Tag Archives: Northern Ireland

It is perfectly possible to imagine a mutually beneficial deal emerging from the UK’s negotiations with the EU over Brexit. We already trade freely with EU countries and meet whatever standards are required to do this. It should pretty much be a matter of saying let’s continue more or less …

Once again Northern Ireland in general and the DUP in particular are taking a bit of a bashing because the Republic of Ireland voted to change its constitution the other week. I doubt there would be any criticism of the DUP if Slovenia had chosen to make such a change. …

There is something dispiritingly similar about Irish nationalism and Scottish nationalism. This is no doubt because the one frequently supports the other. Most Scottish nationalists would cheer if Irish nationalism achieved its goal of uniting Ireland, while I strongly suspect quite a lot of Irish people would delight in seeing …

I have been finding contemporary politics dull and uninspiring. It is above all for this reason that I’ve been struggling to write about recent events. We know that at some point there will be another election struggle between a rather daft, but reinvigorated Labour Party and a worn out Tory …

So far this week we have had the unholy triumvirate of attacks against Brexit and the United Kingdom. First there was Jeremy Corbyn and Labour’s proposal to bind the United Kingdom into a Customs Union with the European Union. This appears to be a purely cynical move designed to drum …

The modern news cycle is like a raging river. Those of us paying attention to it are the helmsmen of our boats, trying to steer ourselves in the right direction while all the while paying attention to what the river is doing. However skilled mariners we may be, sometimes it …

Leaving the EU is as complicated as the UK wishes to make it. The simplest plan for Brexit would be to extend the existing customs rules for the world in general to the EU, with special provision for Ireland. There is a great deal of confusion sown by the Remain …

One of the main benefits of travel and meeting people from different places is to discover that ideas that are almost universally shared in one place are unknown in another. There is a tendency in the West to suppose that what we think everyone thinks. Left/Liberal values are held to …

Apparently the Irish Taoiseach wants the UK to remain in the EU. He is trying to keep the door open to the European Union and if that door fails, then he wants Britain to at least remain in the European Single Market and Customs Union. The Republic of Ireland is …

I know the title gives away much of the article, but I would like to focus on two key aspects: Terrorism and the Union. This is not a partisan piece, but one that tries to rise above mere party politics in an unbiased fashion. Economics are, to an extent, reversible: …

Politicians frequently say their General Election is the most important of their lifetime. Most of the time, they are lying or exaggerating. The General Election of 2001 was, for instance, not a particularly important election. This time however, is likely the most important General Election in a generation, if not …

The Labour Party’s genius plan to “unite the nation” by further Balkanising the United Kingdom The Labour Party and the British Left in general just don’t get it. With the honourable exception of a few Cassandra-like voices warning that the Left must learn to re-embrace patriotism in order to reconnect with …

Let me explain something about Northern Ireland, which is being totally overlooked in all the fear-mongering being pushed by UK mainstream media at present.  There will be no United Ireland because of Brexit. There will not be one in your lifetime, nor mine, dear reader. The UK media, in their …

The country most affected by Brexit, other than the United Kingdom, is likely to be Ireland*.  This is the only nation that shares an actual land border with the UK.  Additionally, the UK is Ireland’s largest export market in the current EU (The exports to Belgium are higher value but …

There is developing an extraordinary difference between Theresa May and Nicola Sturgeon. It is impossible to imagine Nicola Sturgeon going to Washington and charming everyone she meets. While May has dignity, character, politeness and obvious intellect, Sturgeon simply doesn’t. May puts her points with force, but not with anger. She …

Not long ago, we heard the news that the management of the small, family-owned Ashers baking company in Northern Ireland had lost its appeal against a ruling that declared it had “directly” discriminated against a gentleman who requested a political cake. While same-sex marriage is not legal in Northern Ireland, …

The country has never been asked. The precedent of Northern Ireland There is a precedent. In March 1973 a referendum was held in Northern Ireland. The electorate was presented with two proposals: 1. Do you want Northern Ireland to remain part of the United Kingdom? or 2. Do you want …

On June 23rd 2016 one of the most important political events, certainly in recent British political history, occurred when the best part of 34 million British citizens went to the polls to vote in a referendum. This was no ordinary referendum. It had been promised to the people of Great …

It is time for a Believe in Britain campaign. Purpose In recent decades we have seen the growth of regional and national identities. There is the obvious growth of SNP and demands for Scottish independence, but also in Wales – Plaid Cymru now take part in UK-wide general election TV …

Oliver writes in his personal capacity at https://norgroveblog.com I won’t return to this blog for at least another week as I am setting off on holiday to Zante early tomorrow morning, so I wanted to contribute before I go on a subject that I have addressed here fairly recently. A few …