Rishi Sunak to be first PM since Gordon Brown to attend British-Irish Council

Rishi Sunak is set to be first Prime Minister to attend the British and Irish council since Gordon Brown.

Rishi Sunak will attend the council

The Prime Minister is understood to be planning to attend the talks hosted in England and seek to focus minds on the economy and work on a four nations approach to the cost of living crisis.Established in 1999, the council includes the devolved governments of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales, as well as the Republic of Ireland, and United Kingdom.Taking place next week, the event is hosted by the UK Government and would represent the first time Nicola Sturgeon and Rishi Sunak will meet face to face.The pair spoke on the phone last month after Mr Sunak replaced Liz Truss as Prime Minister, something that did not happen during her tenure.Speaking afterwards, Ms Sturgeon said that the call with Mr Sunak had been "constructive", while the Prime Minister stressed "their duty to work closely together.Also attended by the Irish Taeisoch Micheál Martin, the Prime Minister is expected to use the opportunity to put the economy at the centre of the talks. Scotland on Sunday understands he'll be emphasising it’s a shared challenge across the UK which requires a collective effort to tackle. Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, is also expected to attend.It comes as the prime minister labelled inflation the “number one enemy” and vowed he was doing everything he could to “grip” the issue.A UK Government source said: "The prime minister hopes to use the occasion to focus minds on the huge economic challenges we face across the United Kingdom."These are shared challenges which requires every part of the UK to work together."Then Labour Prime Minister Mr Brown was the last UK prime minister to attend the Council, in 2007.