An All-Ireland free travel scheme for senior citizens will be discussed at a landmark cross-Border meeting between Irish Government ministers and the SDLP in Dublin today.
The travel plan, first broached at last Monday's British-Irish Intergovernmental conference in London, would allow OAPs to journey on bus and train routes north and south of the Border for free.
The feasibility of the project will be debated today at Iveagh House by Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern, Minister for Transport Martin Cullen and Minister for the Environment Dick Roche on the Government side, and an SDLP delegation headed by leader Mark Durkan.
Other issues on the agenda include transport links, an all-island energy market, mobile phone roaming charges and linking Lough Neagh and the Shannon via the Ulster Canal.
The roaming charges issue was prompted by complaints by mobile phone users in Border areas who were charged each time they crossed into Northern Ireland or the Republic. Some mobile companies have already addressed this anomaly by allowing subscribers to pay a monthly dual-roaming fee.
Experts believe an all-island energy market may drive down household utility bills on both sides of the Border.
Opening up the Ulster Canal would link Lough Neagh in the north west with Limerick in the mid west for the first time.