The Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland is to host the Shared Heritage, Shared Future summit on Thursday in Edinburgh, as reported by the Irish News.

The event, which the media have been excluded from, is being billed as bringing together “voices from Northern Ireland and Scotland to celebrate the deep historical and cultural connections between our communities while looking towards greater co-operation in the future”.

It comes after Scottish First Minister John Swinney, Welsh first minister Rhun ap Iorwerth and Northern Ireland first minister Michelle O’Neill held a landmark press conference in Cardiff on Monday morning to sign a memorandum of understanding as they declared “Westminster’s time is coming to an end”.

Michelle O’Neill, Mary Lou McDonald, Rhun ap Iorwerth and John Swinney (Image: PA)

Along with Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald, who is the leader of the opposition in the Irish Dáil, the leaders called on the UK Government to “prepare for, plan and facilitate constitutional change”.

The meeting of the Celtic Alliance leaders sparked fury from Unionists, with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) accusing O’Neill of “cosplaying as First Minister in Wales”.

They added: “She isn’t there in any official capacity and when there are meetings at a government level Michelle O’Neill won’t be in the room.”

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A delegation from the DUP is set to attend Thursday’s event, which will be chaired by businesswoman Marie Macklin, who is a vocal supporter of US president Donald Trump and a critic of the SNP.

The four DUP representatives to attend the summit are Phillip Brett, Diane Forsythe, Cheryl Brownlee and David Brooks.

Speaking ahead of the event, Brett said: “This is an exciting time for unionism – across the United Kingdom, assumptions about the inevitable advance of nationalism are being challenged.”

He added: “At a time when people across Northern Ireland want political leaders focused on delivering better public services, growing our economy and tackling the challenges facing families and businesses, those nationalist parties are once again prioritising constitutional agitation.

“They can travel to Cardiff to talk about breaking up our country. We will travel to Scotland to build the relationships that strengthen it.”