A great year for Irish-Scottish relations

THE year 2025 was a notable year one for Irish-Scottish relations. The Consulate has seen the highest number of inward ministerial visits from Ireland, with six visits to Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stirling and Aberdeen in areas ranging from special and inclusive education to cultural cooperation.

Last month also saw a hectic, but enjoyable, few days as the First Minister of Scotland John Swinney visited Dublin for a series of engagements including the launch of the new Ireland-Scotland Cooperation Framework.

A particular highlight of this visit was his courtesy call on President Catherine Connolly, the first international visitor hosted in her official residence Áras an Uachtaráin by our newly elected President (above). During this meeting, the President spoke of her own personal and family connections with Scotland. The First Minister noted his own strong link with Ireland, through his wife, and recalled his personal visits to Ireland with her to trace her Donegal roots and visit Croke Park, the headquarters of the GAA. He paid tribute to the huge and historic contribution made by the Irish community to Scotland and its bilateral connection with Ireland.

A detailed meeting with the Taoiseach Micheál Martin was held, covering issues such as energy, environmental conservation and cultural connections. There were also a series of business engagements and an incredible St Andrew’s Day reception in the Guinness Storehouse organised by the excellent team in the Scottish Government Ireland office in Dublin.

Minister Neale Richmond hosted the First Minister for a meeting on bilateral collaboration in areas of devolved policy areas. They were joined by a group of key stakeholders from community groups, business, academia, culture and regional authorities who have helped deepen links over the last four years. Over the last four years, Ireland and Scotland have worked jointly on six thematic areas where the Scottish Government has devolved responsibility. As the Ireland-Scotland relationship continues to evolve and grow, the framework for our cooperation needs to do so too. It is with this aim that the new Ireland-Scotland Bilateral Cooperation Framework 2030 has been agreed, to provide strategic direction and concrete actions for cooperation to the end of the decade. As part of this launch, UCD and the University of Strathclyde presented their collaboration on the launch of the first indigenous Irish satellite Eirsat-1 and their ongoing plans to deepen Irish Scottish space research and industry in the years ahead.

Innovation and Internationals

In October, Capturing the Offshore Wind Opportunity was jointly hosted by Minister Timmy Dooley and Cabinet Secretary Gillian Martin in the One Tech Hub in Aberdeen which saw nearly 100 key stakeholders take part in roundtable engagements on the offshore wind supply chain, floating wind and innovation and skill development. Site visits to the Port of Aberdeen and Port of Ardersier Energy Transition Facility also allowed attendees from across Scotland and Ireland to explore key strategic infrastructure for the sector.

The conference concluded with a reception in the wonderful Town House of Aberdeen Council hosted by Lord Provost David Cameron with performances by the Aberdeen Gaelic Choir. This is the second conference to be hosted on Irish- Scottish renewable collaboration by the two governments and we look forward to supporting further engagements between Ireland and Scotland in this important sector which will facilitate us to meet our respective climate commitments in the years ahead.

Later in October we travelled to Inverness as, for the first time, the men’s and women’s fixtures of compromise Hurling/Shinty and Camogie/Shinty shared equal billing on the same stage. This is the only regular international fixture that showcases the games of Hurling, Camogie and Shinty to a global audience and was shown on the BBC platforms in the UK and on YouTube for an international audience. The First Minister of Scotland attended both games, with the GAA represented by their Director General, Tom Ryan, and the Camogie Association by President Brian Molloy.

Both the Irish teams won close games against their Scottish counterparts, with representation from dozens of counties, which included multiple All-Ireland winners and All Star recipients in both codes. An underage exhibition game was also held between the only Hurling and Camogie club in Scotland, Ceann Creige—based in Glasgow—and Inverness Shinty club, showcasing the next generation of talented players on a large stage.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ireland were proud to support the Camogie team to travel to Inverness cost free. Europlan Group, an Irish engineering company and Enterprise Ireland UK client company who are making significant inroads into Scotland, also supported the Camogie team as main shirt sponsor.

The Consulate also attended the formal opening of a new shinty museum in Bught Park which included considerable references to the shared roots and evolution of Shinty and Hurling, the importance of the international fixture to Shinty and the emergence of the women’s code in both Camogie and Shinty. This was a wonderful example of the sporting and cultural links that bind our two countries and well done to all involved in the delivery of this series, particularly the Camanachd Association.

Report and rural affairs

In November, the Consulate supported the launch of the Irish in Britain report into the 2022 Scottish Census on November 6 at General Register House in Edinburgh. National Records Scotland (NRS) agreed to host the launch and support the event. The CEO of NRS, Alison Byrne, spoke at length about the Irish community in Scotland, the value of census data on immigrant populations and some of the notable Irish related records held by the NRS.

This report presents key statistical data and an overall analysis of the 2022 Census of Scotland, focusing in particular on the resident Irish population. The study was commissioned by the community group Irish in Britain to explore the size and characteristics of these communities, defined on grounds of self-reported country of birth, passport held and ethnicity—and also including those who identify as Gypsy/Travellers. This information will be of particular help to support community groups in Scotland apply for funding from statutory bodies as it provides statistical data which can be easily accessed to facilitate evidence based funding applications. We also think it might be of value to academics with an interest in modern history, migration and the Irish in Scotland as a foundation for further research.

The event was well attended by Irish community groups, academic contacts and members of our wider stakeholder network. The support of NRS was particularly appreciated by those in attendance as an acknowledgment by Scottish authorities of the important contribution made to Scotland by the Irish community.

In early December, we held what we had dubbed internally as the ‘peat meet,’ a day-long engagement exploring how peatland restoration links the island of Ireland and Scotland through the arts, science and policy. We were honoured to be hosted by Michelle Thomson in the Scottish Parliament for a reception to launch a week long exhibition by the incredibly talented Belfast based sculpture artist Farhad O'Neill. Farhad’s wonderful exhibition explores the cultural links between Ireland and Scotland through peat based artwork derived from our shared mythology.

Earlier that day, the Consulate General of Ireland, The University of Edinburgh, the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute and the Centre for Cross Border Cooperation hosted a half -day conference exploring collaboration on peatland restoration between key stakeholders and policy makers from the island of Ireland and Scotland. A wide range of attendees ranging from artists, scientists, farmers and experts in AI mapping gathered to explore this very important policy issue from multiple points of view. The Irish Government’s Shared Island initiative has awarded €12m to peatland restoration collaboration on the island of Ireland and in Scotland and this work has been underway for the last two years.

Topics discussed included cultural and social connections in peatland communities, the scientific and policy challenges faced across the Irish Sea on peatland restoration and the economic and community activities which can facilitate and benefit from future peatland restoration activities. This event presented an overview of the current operation and future funding plans of the Shared Island initiative to academic researchers, civil society groups and industry in Scotland and provided an opportunity for Irish and Scottish policy makers to engage with relevant stakeholders from across these islands.

Shared stories and futures

We ended 2025 on a high, with an incredible night at ‘From Donegal to Glasgow: Shared Stories, Shared Futures,’ hosted in the wonderful Glasgow City Council City Chambers.

A panel discussion of Donegal Glasgow royalty including former Irish football internationals Packie Bonner and Owen Coyle and Deacon Blue singers Ricky Ross and Lorraine McIntosh shared many laughs, some tears and very sage advice for a packed hall of guests from across Scotland and Ireland. The entire event was very ably MCed by sports broadcaster Sarah Mulkerrins who guided a conversation that included serving a cup of gravy instead of coffee, the tears of a young girl getting onto the Glasgow bus as she departed for a new life and the joy of children setting off home for a summer in Donegal.

Delivered in partnership with the superb teams in Donegal County Council and Glasgow City Council, this event celebrated the common grounds in sport, music and culture that link these two great regions.

Our host Bailie Annette Christie gave a warm welcome and set out the hugely important contribution that the people of Donegal have made to Glasgow and how the two areas were united by warm welcomes and wicked sense of humour. She recalled some wonderful milestones in 2025 such as the first St Brigid’s day event hosted by the Council, the hosting of the Donegal Working Lives exhibition in Glasgow Life’s Mitchell Library and the city's first recurring St Patrick’s Day Parade. she set out how much she looked forward to the many Irish and Donegal events planned for 2026.

To conclude, the Cathaoirleach of Donegal County Council Paul Canning spoke of the deep links between Glasgow and Donegal and the important role that culture and sport has played in fostering these. He spoke of the variety and symmetry of the two places, with the straight lines and grid network of Glasgow city complementing the winding roads and scattered homes of Donegal.

From Packie Bonner to peatlands or from Inverness to the Áras, the relationship between Ireland and Scotland is underpinned by the work of thousands of people across these two countries. The Consulate wishes all the readers of The Irish Voice the very best for 2026 and we look forward to continuing to work with and on behalf of all of you.

Jerry O’Donovan is the Consul General of Ireland in Scotland