AS I SEE IT
BY MARIANNE HERON
Time for a reset! Cheery headlines to signal a change of mood in Anglo Irish relations following Labour’s landslide UK victory. But who is going to do the resetting? The subtext here is that Labour leaders care more about Ireland than the Conservatives did and it should be easier to work with them.
There is past form here to give hope: think of Labour’s Tony Blair and Bertie Aherne’s roles in birthing the Good Friday Agreement. Both Taoiseach Simon Harris and Tanaiste Martin have been quick to welcome a potential warming of the relationship with the UK on behalf of the Government.
But what about Sinn Fein? The party’s fortunes may be sliding in the South but they did brilliantly in the elections in the North, becoming the largest party and in the General Election won seven seats at Westminster, the most held by any party of the 18 seats for the North.
Isn’t it time for a reset and for those seven to take seats they were elected to fill? If as first Minister Michelle O’Neill has said, she is there to represent everyone in the North – regardless of allegiance – shouldn’t the SF’s elected MPs ride fearlessly into the House of Commons as the Magnificent Seven to fight for justice for their constituents?
Sinn Fein’s abstentionist policy was formulated in the early 1900s and has a complex history. Among the reasons for abstention from various institutions over the years have been the oath of allegiance to the British Crown, conscription of Irishmen by Britain, and partition. Since the Good Friday Agreement established the Northern Ireland Assembly, SF have sat at Stormont (well, sometimes) but not at Westminster, on the grounds that British political institutions should play no part in governing the people of Ireland and that SF representatives shouldn’t make decisions on behalf of British people.
What may have made sense over a century ago may seem more like an antediluvian attitude and a missed opportunity now. At a practical level the North, the poor relation when it comes to finance and services compared with England, Scotland and Wales, badly needs strong representation at Westminster. It has the longest waiting lists on the NHS, a poor education record with the highest number with no or basic educational qualifications and is among the poorest regions in the UK.
There are many challenges facing the North, currently regulated by the UK which need to be tackled education is still largely segregated along Catholic, Protestant lines rather than integrated. Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer has promised closer relations with Europe, in the wake of Brexit. A majority in the North voted to remain and Brexit caused endless difficulties in relations and trade between the two islands and it is very much in the interest of both North and South to have an input in new plans.
There are key pieces of legislation affecting Ireland to be considered in the short term which Starmer has said he will scrap. That is the Legacy Act, dealing with the Troubles, and the infamous Rwanda asylum plan which has caused an influx of asylum seekers here, fleeing the threat of deportation from the UK.
In the longer term the prospect of a United Ireland would surely be helped with closer ties and communication about Irish aspirations. A huge amount of work and North South co-operation needs to be done to bring that reality closer with big issues to be resolved.
How for instance could two different education systems and two very different health systems be integrated? How could a United Ireland be funded, the North once a contributor to the UK’s finances, now requires a subvention of billions (10 billion is one of the estimates of the cost of unity.)
It would be good to see Sinn Fein rolling up their sleeves and getting involved in working for integration rather than limiting themselves to demanding a Border poll. The Government’s Shared Island Initiative has shown what can be achieved in building cross border relations with imaginative schemes like the Ulster Canal linking Clones and Clonfad.
There is plenty of winning over to be done – not only those who identify as orange but those who are green too. Currently a majority in the North wouldn’t say yes to unity, so there is work to be done before that will happen. Resetting should include Sinn Fein.
