Minority of British Citizens want NI to remain part of the United Kingdom

Kermit.de.frog

Check out the latest Brexit poll.





Which of these is the greatest priority:

1. That the United Kingdom leaves the European Union
or
2. That the union between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom is maintained


___________________________________


Leave Voters

That the UK leaves the EU: 71% • That Northern Ireland remains part of the UK: 12%


___________________________________


Remain Voters

That the UK leaves the EU: 9% • That Northern Ireland remains part of the UK: 47%

From Yougov

Data here:

http://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/cumulus_uploads/document/bhy62x09m0/LBC_Results_180322_w.pdf

Jeez ever feel like you are not wanted? :eek:

Leave voters - just 12% think NI should remain part of the UK instead of Brexit.


Why do I get the feeling we'll be taking over more than we might actually want in the years ahead.

end of the road

it's certainly great news. i have said for a long time now that britain doesn't want northern ireland. i can't see that this new revelation will bring unification closer though, unfortunately.

Tangatagamadda Chaddabinga Bonga Bungo

Unionists have given 100 years of loyalty to the Empire, and England couldn't give the slightest sh1t about them. In fact, if a majority of people in the UK knew how much they were paying to keep the statelet afloat they would vote to Leave them.

Edgarfrndly

The British public was asked in a survey spanning 25+ years what their views on NI was (Remain part of the UK or unify with Ireland). In every single survey bar one, they chose for NI to unify with the rest of Ireland.

Anytime I've spoken to my English friends, at no point have I ever felt like they gave a fiddler's about the north, or even understood it. Very few of them have ever visited it, and many are even confused about the status of the north and why it's not part of the rest of Ireland.

Tangatagamadda Chaddabinga Bonga Bungo

NO SURRENDER!!!

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

The Brexiteers have not thought this true: the majority of them, one would assume, are Conservative; and if Norhtern Ireland were to leave the UK, their government goes with it.

end of the road

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

The Brexiteers have not thought this true: the majority of them, one would assume, are Conservative; and if Norhtern Ireland were to leave the UK, their government goes with it.

to be fair that in itself would be a good thing. the DUP end up buried and jeremy likely becomes prime minister.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

end of the road wrote: »

to be fair that in itself would be a good thing. the DUP end up buried and jeremy likely becomes prime minister.

... unless you're Jewish, apparently...

Yer Da sells Avon

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

... unless you're Jewish, apparently...

Only if you believe the latest right-wing smear campaign. Last month he was a communist spy. That didn't work, so this month he's an anti-semite. Next month it'll be the IRA stuff again.

end of the road

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

... unless you're Jewish, apparently...

there is no way jeremy is anti-semetic. jeremy wouldn't do anything like that. he's a good man. he has been campaigning against racism and similar for decades. he will be a great prime minister.

Peregrinus

The poll doesn't show, as claimed that "minority of British Citizens want NI to remain part of the United Kingdom". It shows that a minority of British citizens rate that as a more important objective than maintaining the Union. It doesn't follow that those rate Brexit more important don't want to maintain the Union. They may want both. In fact, I'd hazard a guess that the bulk of Brexiters do want both, regardless of which order they rank them in.

Vic_08

Peregrinus wrote: »

The poll doesn't show, as claimed that "minority of British Citizens want NI to remain part of the United Kingdom". It shows that a minority of British citizens rate that as a more important objective than maintaining the Union. It doesn't follow that those rate Brexit more important don't want to maintain the Union. They may want both. In fact, I'd hazard a guess that the bulk of Brexiters do want both, regardless of which order they rank them in.

I'd hazard a guess that a majority of Brexiters don't understand the current status of NI, couldn't explain the difference between UK and Britain and would fail to mark NI on a map.

Peregrinus

Vic_08 wrote: »

I'd hazard a guess that a majority of Brexiters don't understand the current status of NI, couldn't explain the difference between UK and Britain and would fail to mark NI on a map.

The same might be true of a majority of remainers. NI generall doesn't feature very highly in the British consciousness when it's not being a problem.

But that doesn't mean they don't want NI to remain part of the UK. The only way to find that out is to ask them the question, and this survey doesn't ask it.

Kermit.de.frog

Peregrinus wrote: »

The same might be true of a majority of remainers. NI generall doesn't feature very highly in the British consciousness when it's not being a problem.

But that doesn't mean they don't want NI to remain part of the UK. The only way to find that out is to ask them the question, and this survey doesn't ask it.

Take the remainers at just 47% to keep NI in UK and to be honest it might as well ask it.

Just 12% for leave.

It tells you what they think of the 6 counties if nothing else.

corny

Its hardly surprising. Irrespective of your politics....why on earth would anyone (UK or Ireland) want union with the north?

Jesus, i'd march the streets to prevent a united Ireland.

kneemos

The English barely know what Wales is never mind the North.

Doubt the Unionists give a ****e anyway. Being part of the Union is all they care about.

Amirani

corny wrote: »

Its hardly surprising. Irrespective of your politics....why on earth would anyone (UK or Ireland) want union with the north?

Jesus, i'd march the streets to prevent a united Ireland.

I'd consider doing similar. As well as the economic drawbacks, I could well envisage there being bombings etc. in Dublin and other Irish cities by dissident Unionists. Would not be worth that.

McMurphy

Amirani wrote: »

I'd consider doing similar. As well as the economic drawbacks, I could well envisage there being bombings etc. in Dublin and other Irish cities by dissident Unionists. Would not be worth that.

I've often heard this line trotted out, dissident unionists you say?

Mmmm. And What might their aim be?

If Britain severed it's links and withdrew, then what?

Bomb Dublin to try and force the Irish out of another part of the island of Ireland?

Make the 6 counties a separate state? (Wouldn't that defeat their unionism ethos?)

Make the British Government re-invade?

I don't envisage it myself.

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

Peregrinus

Under the GFA the status of NI as a part of the United Kingdom can't be changed without the consent of a majority, expressed in a poll. So whether the majority of voters in GB are committed to the Union or not doesn't really clinch matters; NI has a veto over any constitutional change which would see them cease to be a part of the UK.

Of course, there are those on the Brexiter side who would be happy to, um, "move on" from the GFA. But for the most part they are not people who would welcome the dissolution of the Union. I'm thinking Kate Hoey and Michael Gove.

Amirani

Johnny Dogs wrote: »

I've often heard this line trotted out, dissident unionists you say?

Mmmm. And What might their aim be?

If Britain severed it's links and withdrew, then what?

Bomb Dublin to try and force the Irish out of another part of the island of Ireland?

Make the 6 counties a separate state? (Wouldn't that defeat their unionism ethos?)

Make the British Government re-invade?

I don't envisage it myself.

I don't believe that there's any constitutional way that Britain could unilaterally sever its links to Northern Ireland. Hence the only possible way would be through actions taken in Ireland (North and South). I think it's entirely possible that dissident Unionists would seek to influence or disrupt these actions through violence.

As a result, I'd probably want to avoid a scenario where a United Ireland seemed a likely scenario. I don't think there'd be much tangible benefit to most people down South. Particularly in Dublin, it would just be another drain on economic resources to support a group of counties that share some deep seated resentment for you.

On a similar note - can people thinking of many recent unifications that have been successful? Germany worked pretty well in the 1990s I guess (though there are still issues there), but the trend Worldwide seems to be towards de-unification and independence movements for regions rather than the opposite way round. I think even if Ireland was to unify, there'd need to be more decentralisation of power than is currently the case.

Mint Sauce

Brexit is one of the biggest fcuk ups of the British Government in a long long time. No exit stratagy, as never expected it to go through, let alone how it would affect the Union, and its land border it shares. Those who supported it only did for they own egos and political gains, and when it did go through, even they were, oh fcuk, what do we do now!

Further still, when May failed to get her majority, she tried to bribe the the DUP, tried to go behind their back, thinking ah the 500 Million will keep them sweet. Whilst I am against most things they stand for, I do respect them for pulling the conservatives, and saying, hey we have a say here to, in relation to Mays first Brexit plan.

All of this combined, will eventually be Mays failling and downfall. Whilst most failed PMs, do have at least one or two positives that people occassionally remember, I cant think of anything for May.

As for most of Britian, why would they care about the North, allot of them still think that the whole of Ireland is still part of the Union. As for the polititians not wanting it, its because they cant afford it, but then the Irish Government cant really afford it either.

Unfortunetly, the Political issues will never dissappear, what ever happens. Theres is to much history, to many wounds, scares, and still enough around, the pass that to future generations.

topper75

corny wrote: »

Jesus, i'd march the streets to prevent a united Ireland.

Being of a nationalist persuasion I wouldn't have joined you before this morning.

I heard an NI tourist ad on the way in to work though on the radio: "...and all this just 2 hours away".

Not me sonny Jim, I mused.

Then it hit me like a cricket bat/hurley [delete as appropriate] between the eyes - a Belfast-Dublin axis on the east coast would bury the west. As if it wasn't bad enough already. Derry/Cork/Limerick/Galway would have to settle for crumbs.

So it's a no for me.

Sleepy

No surprise in that result, I don't think I've ever met an Englishman who wanted anything to do with Northern Ireland.

There's an eerie stagnation, at best, about unionism now more than ever. With the huge constitutional, political and economic changes that Brexit is bringing to definitively confirm the end of Empire/British decline, unionists have an enormously idiosyncratic "Where the fúck are we going?" look about their entire existence. That, more than anything. And leaders? Statesmen? Cultural ambassadors? Where is the dynamism in the community?

For how long can any community progress and advance when their existence is based on what they are not/whom they hate, and on a wholly out-of-date sense of what they are? This is a double whammy for unionists: culturally and educationally nationalists have progressed enormously from the figures of contempt of, say, 1930s Belfast, and the British state they profess allegiance to is undergoing yet another transition of existential proportions that is moving it from the great imperial power with which they identified. Unionist identity has always been bound up with association with power and this has strengthened what JJ Lee described as their settler-colonial 'herrenvolk mentality'. Now, in another historical first, it is nationalists who are more associated with power (the EU). [by internationalising the Northern conflict nationalists outsmarted the more powerful unionists on so many levels]

Talking to a loyalist recently I was struck by not only the socio-economic deprivation but, moreover, by the lack of momentum and sense of progress that every community that has embraced education as the path to freedom gives off. There's a hostility to education among poor unionists that is culturally not near as big a factor in the nationalist community. The decline of traditional unionist industries, and thus the apprentices that many loyalists historically entered, has not been replaced by an embrace of other educational avenues. This stagnation is a huge existential problem for unionism and the principal source of alienation in working class loyalist areas, and by extension a problem for both communities.

I've said it before many times: when the British cut the enormous subventions to unionists, unionists will have to face up to a whole array of realities connected with their existence on this little island. It looks like the British will finally be forced to do that in their own post-Brexit existence.

end of the road

corny wrote: »

Its hardly surprising. Irrespective of your politics....why on earth would anyone (UK or Ireland) want union with the north?

Jesus, i'd march the streets to prevent a united Ireland.

it's part of this country and reunification is our destiny. march away but a strong counter-march would be launched by those of us who want the real ireland, the 32 county republic.

Amirani wrote: »

I'd consider doing similar. As well as the economic drawbacks, I could well envisage there being bombings etc. in Dublin and other Irish cities by dissident Unionists. Would not be worth that.

considering the dissident Unionists can only muster up a bit of rioting, they have no support from the BA or british government, and bombing won't bring anything for them, i think we can probably say that the likelyhood of there being bombs is very slim to non-existant.
the supposed economic drawbacks are likely over exaggerated as well, there will quite likely be a transition period with the EU and britain helping to steady the ship upon reunification while everything is sorted out and integration between both north and south takes place.
reunification is coming, it's a case of when and not if. may not be in our lifetimes but who knows.

Amirani

end of the road wrote: »

reunification is coming, it's a case of when and not if. may not be in our lifetimes but who knows.

International trends seem to be more around secession and increased regional autonomy rather than unification. I'm not sure a United Ireland is necessarily inevitable in this sense due to the large cultural and historical differences.

end of the road

Amirani wrote: »

International trends seem to be more around secession and increased regional autonomy rather than unification. I'm not sure a United Ireland is necessarily inevitable in this sense due to the large cultural and historical differences.

remember though that northern ireland is a very small region, which is unlikely to be able to independantly survive by itself. the other regions which currently have campaigns for independance such as catalonia and so on are quite big and will survive independantly.

Capt'n Midnight

Amirani wrote: »

I don't believe that there's any constitutional way that Britain could unilaterally sever its links to Northern Ireland.

Parliament is sovereign.

So the Commons could vote on anything tomorrow.
The Lords lost their veto a long time ago.

And the easiest thing to do is turn off the cash.
Money that could go to the NHS :pac:

ToddyDoody

Northern Ireland is a very important part of the UK*

*not really, more of a humanitarian project.

TheValeyard

DUP will deny that poll ever happened

Sand

end of the road wrote: »

remember though that northern ireland is a very small region, which is unlikely to be able to independantly survive by itself. the other regions which currently have campaigns for independance such as catalonia and so on are quite big and will survive independantly.

Survival outside the EU might be questionable, but the prosperity of the single market, the four freedoms, the complete lack of a credible military threat and the common regulatory framework make the survival of very small states perfectly viable. At least if they are far from Russia. Big states were a result of historical pressures that don't exist within the context of the EU.

Spain would veto the membership of Catalonia, but I cant see Ireland vetoing EU membership if Northern Ireland is re-partitioned, with only hard majority unionist areas remaining. It would be win-win for Ireland: extract concessions from Northern Ireland, grant it EU membership that suits Ireland's own interests, and avoid a hefty bill for a sullen, resentful population who don't want to be in a United Ireland.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Northern Ireland is like that spoilt brat of a child that no one really likes and neither parent wants custody of when gong through an otherwise amicable divorce.

Chris_Heilong

As a kid I might have thought NI should be a part of the republic but with the wisdom of age I say I dont want them, we can not afford them and the troubles that would start up from the whole business.

Do we really want this:

blanch152

Peregrinus wrote: »

The poll doesn't show, as claimed that "minority of British Citizens want NI to remain part of the United Kingdom". It shows that a minority of British citizens rate that as a more important objective than maintaining the Union. It doesn't follow that those rate Brexit more important don't want to maintain the Union. They may want both. In fact, I'd hazard a guess that the bulk of Brexiters do want both, regardless of which order they rank them in.

Exactly. Have a poll of Irish people asking them whether they would prefer:

(1) To win the lotto, or
(2) To have a united Ireland.


You would probably get over 80% voting for (1) and most of those voting for (2) only doing so because they believe it is slightly more realistic than winning the lotto.

The poll, as presented by YouGov, has no meaning, other than to show that ordinary British people remain extremely committed to Brexit.

blanch152

blanch152 wrote: »

The poll, as presented by YouGov, has no meaning, other than to show that ordinary British people remain extremely committed to Brexit.

The irony of attempting to denude the poll of the meaning you don't like and then claiming something as utterly preposterous as the bold part because it's the meaning you'd like to be a reality. From the poll:

Which of these is a greater priority for you?
That the United Kingdom leaves the European Union 36 %
That the union between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom is maintained 29 %
Neither of these are important to me 22%
Don’t know 14%

Beasty

Many British see NI as a source of trouble, and more importantly cost. They would be delighted to see the current €10-15bn pumped into NI every year being used to reduce the cost of Brexit

Can't see how Ireland could afford to pump that sort of cash into the North.

Sleepy

Ireland can't afford the north.

As of December 2008 the public sector in Northern Ireland accounted for 30.8% of the total workforce. If the British withdrew, that would be a lot of unemployed PS workers. Sure, some front-line workers (teachers, nurses, doctors, firemen etc) would still be necessary but a lot of the admin staff would be utterly redundant as our departments wouldn't need all of them. Can a PSNI officer just be given a Garda uniform and told he/she is now part of a different force? Wouldn't they need complete re-training to ensure they know the laws of the Republic rather than those of the UK?

Even where jobs are roughly equivalent (and still required) contractual issues would be a nightmare to resolve, finding equivalent grades and roles within our PS to those of the workers. How do you get the Unions to play ball on salary issues? Bring every PS worker in the country to the higher current pay level for each role? That could possibly leave staff earning more than managers they report to. Bring all Northern workers onto the equivalent salary of their Republican counterpart? Would the Unions stand for so many pay-cuts?

We'd also have another 30,000 or so unemployed to pay dole for, god knows how many pensioners (who'd never have contributed to our exchequer) to pay pensions for and a private sector that doesn't generate enough tax to cover the costs.

If unification ever happens, it'll mean very hard times for the Irish. And that's before you even consider the potential for Unionist-lead violence and political instability.

DEFTLEFTHAND

They're in a terribly unfortunate situation and I really feel for the North. Not wanted by anyone. The red headed stepchild of the British Isles.

Oh sure Britain would love to dump them on our shoulders but they should realise that we will not stand for it.

They're your problem British people not ours. Don't you dare try and fck up our country.

end of the road

Sleepy wrote: »

Ireland can't afford the north.

well it will have to. reunification is going to happen, so we will have to find the money.

Sleepy wrote: »

As of December 2008 the public sector in Northern Ireland accounted for 30.8% of the total workforce. If the British withdrew, that would be a lot of unemployed PS workers. Sure, some front-line workers (teachers, nurses, doctors, firemen etc) would still be necessary but a lot of the admin staff would be utterly redundant as our departments wouldn't need all of them. Can a PSNI officer just be given a Garda uniform and told he/she is now part of a different force? Wouldn't they need complete re-training to ensure they know the laws of the Republic rather than those of the UK?

Even where jobs are roughly equivalent (and still required) contractual issues would be a nightmare to resolve, finding equivalent grades and roles within our PS to those of the workers. How do you get the Unions to play ball on salary issues? Bring every PS worker in the country to the higher current pay level for each role? That could possibly leave staff earning more than managers they report to. Bring all Northern workers onto the equivalent salary of their Republican counterpart? Would the Unions stand for so many pay-cuts?

We'd also have another 30,000 or so unemployed to pay dole for, god knows how many pensioners (who'd never have contributed to our exchequer) to pay pensions for and a private sector that doesn't generate enough tax to cover the costs.

If unification ever happens, it'll mean very hard times for the Irish. And that's before you even consider the potential for Unionist-lead violence and political instability.[/QUOTE]

it's not a case of if, it's a case of when. the end game is reunification. whether people like it, want it or not. if there is any unionist violence, and that is an if, it would very likely be containible given they would have no support from the british government or army and hardly anyone in their community. they would be fighting for nothing. everything else you mention would likely be sorted during a transition period. it would have to be.

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

They're in a terribly unfortunate situation and I really feel for the North. Not wanted by anyone. The red headed stepchild of the British Isles.

Oh sure Britain would love to dump them on our shoulders but they should realise that we will not stand for it.

They're your problem British people not ours. Don't you dare try and fck up our country.

they will be our problem eventually as they are part of our country. you won't have a choice but to stand for it. britain could make things very difficult for us if we refuse to except northern ireland. trade blockades, navel blockades, etc.
the EU will just huff and puff and blow the house down but that is probably all they will be able to do.

antamadan

very interesting poll. After all the Brexiteers almost completely match those that think the British Empire was great, and yet they'd dump the North to do trade deals with Australia NZ etc.

heebusjeebus

end of the road wrote: »

well it will have to. reunification is going to happen, so we will have to find the money.

Surely there will be a referendum before this is foisted on us?
I don't see it happening unless the economic situation up north is more self sufficient.

Greentopia

end of the road wrote: »

well it will have to. reunification is going to happen, so we will have to find the money.

You keep saying that but there is no large scale movement for it anywhere except for Sinn Fein. No-one I know has any strong feelings about wanting reunification. If you're looking for the younger generation in Ireland to mobilise and demand a referendum on this you'll be waiting.

What happens in the North is way down most people's list of priorities, and saying things like "well we'll just have to pay for it" doesn't help win people over when we can't provide decent public services or governance for our own people.

I don't want the myriad problems that would inevitably come with a united Ireland. Especially disgruntled unionists who would inevitably take out their anger on us in violent ways. No thanks.

end of the road

heebusjeebus wrote: »

Surely there will be a referendum before this is foisted on us?
I don't see it happening unless the economic situation up north is more self sufficient.

there will be a referendum, but britain and the EU will likely do whatever they can to insure a yes vote is sellible to the people. look reunification isn't going to happen today or tomorrow, it's years maybe decades away if not longer. but it is going to happen as that is the end game.

Greentopia wrote: »

You keep saying that but there is no large scale movement for it anywhere except for Sinn Fein. No-one I know has any strong feelings about wanting reunification. If you're looking for the younger generation in Ireland to mobilise and demand a referendum on this you'll be waiting.

What happens in the North is way down most people's list of priorities, and saying things like "well we'll just have to pay for it" doesn't help win people over when we can't provide decent public services or governance for our own people.

I don't want the myriad problems that would inevitably come with a united Ireland. Especially disgruntled unionists who would inevitably take out their anger on us in violent ways. No thanks.

you are assuming we will be in a position to say no . i'd suspect we won't. britain wants rid of NI and the EU seems to want a sea border with the uk mainland. i reccan they will do what they need to do to insure a yes vote.

Greentopia

end of the road wrote: »

you are assuming we will be in a position to say no . i'd suspect we won't. britain wants rid of NI and the EU seems to want a sea border with the uk mainland. i reccan they will do what they need to do to insure a yes vote.

They may want to offload it but we're a democratic state, the UK can't foist something like that on us without us having a democratic vote on it. They don't get to decide sh1t for us any more, those days are over, even more so when they will have left the EU.

And I think there are plenty of Catholics in NI who wouldn't want to see a united Ireland either, never mind the unionists. Why would they want an inferior health care service and bigger class sizes for heir kids? where would the €10 billion hole in their economy come from when we can't afford it? they're not blind, they see how Ireland has been run since independence.

A united Ireland may be a noble idea but the realities of what it would mean for people both sides of the border means no-one is in any rush to want to see it happen save hard core nationalists. I don't see it ever happening tbh.

Dick phelan

I just can't see how North and South will ever join together again. Firstly NI would have to vote for it which i don't see a vote happening anytime soon, also surely we would all have to vote on it as well. I think most in the Republic would vote against it tbh, we've enough problems without adding a largely economic basket case, politically unstable and in general more backward place to the list. I've no doubt the Brits regrets not giving us the 6 counties back when they could have. They are stuck with them now and let them at it tbh, it's not our problem it's their's.

wes

end of the road wrote: »

to be fair that in itself would be a good thing. the DUP end up buried and jeremy likely becomes prime minister.

but then we are stuck with them :eek:.

end of the road

Greentopia wrote: »

They may want to offload it but we're a democratic state, the UK can't foist something like that on us without us having a democratic vote on it. They don't get to decide sh1t for us any more, those days are over, even more so when they will have left the EU.

And I think there are plenty of Catholics in NI who wouldn't want to see a united Ireland either, never mind the unionists. Why would they want an inferior health care service and bigger class sizes for heir kids? where would the €10 billion hole in their economy come from when we can't afford it? they're not blind, they see how Ireland has been run since independence.

A united Ireland may be a noble idea but the realities of what it would mean for people both sides of the border means no-one is in any rush to want to see it happen save hard core nationalists. I don't see it ever happening tbh.

as much as some seem to think otherwise, britain isn't exactly ran any beter then ourselves. in fact in many ways it seems to be a hell of a lot worse. the nhs will probably be privatized eventually anyway so for northern ireland it's not going to be the b all and end all to stay part of britain for.

i believe it would be naive to think britain wouldn't poke us in the direction of excepting a UI. if they wanted they could still do us a lot of economic damage. essentially the outcome of a referendum in the south is probably unlikely to matter when it comes to it, because it will be about the benefit of britain getting shot of northern ireland and the EU'S possible long term vision of a sea border between the island of ireland and the uk.

Dick phelan wrote: »

I just can't see how North and South will ever join together again. Firstly NI would have to vote for it which i don't see a vote happening anytime soon, also surely we would all have to vote on it as well. I think most in the Republic would vote against it tbh, we've enough problems without adding a largely economic basket case, politically unstable and in general more backward place to the list. I've no doubt the Brits regrets not giving us the 6 counties back when they could have. They are stuck with them now and let them at it tbh, it's not our problem it's their's.

it is our problem, and it will be more so our problem when it happens. the supposed economic arguments are failed arguments which have only come about in the past few years because people seem not to be able to formulate an argument as to why a UI actually shouldn't happen. in reality, there is no argument why a UI shouldn't happen given ultimately it is the end game of the full process of the GFA.

Jacko753

NI is not a part of the UK.

NI is part of the Republic proclaimed in 1916 but through years of propaganda and intimidation Britain convinced the other 26 counties that they are better off without them.

In 1979 an extensive poll throughout the 26 counties showed nearly 90 percent of people in the 26 wanted complete immediate unilateral British withdrawal from the 6 counties but with all the propaganda flooded into the 26 counties over the years people have lost interest and are convinced that they should stay separate

OldMrBrennan83

This post has been deleted.

ChikiChiki

Ain't karma a bitch. Taking a small bit of glee in how this looks like the NI issue is going to continue to deliver the UK a serious kick when its already down.

If we were to take NI back security costs would need to be EU subsidised for a significant period until full integration. Cannot see the bigotted "No Surrender" crowd making things easy for a couple of decades however they are dying out and the younger generations of loyalists (35 and unders) seem to be a lot more open to reconciliations and wanting to move forward in a peaceful manner.

Some medium term pain but I think reunification could work in time and we will need EU financial support on implementation before we can stand on our own.