I watched a TV report recently on how Protestants living along the border area view the notion of a border poll. One man, whose farm straddles the north and the south, said he thought the border should be done away with – and have all of Ireland within the UK. As for himself, he’d vote against Irish reunification, and cited the National Health Service available in the north and absent in the south as a major factor.
The reporter, Enda McClafferty I think it was, didn’t mention that many people wish to create a new Ireland – not simply the north being swallowed whole by the south. That couldn’t be repeated often enough. Few of us would relish being gobbled up by the south, with many nationalists/republicans as opposed to such an idea as unionists.
Meanwhile, if Micheal Martin and Fianna Fail or even Enda Kenny and Fine Gael are serious about the idea of a reunited Ireland, the one thing they could do that would have considerable impact on those who waver between the status quo and reunification would be to establish a Health Service that is as good as, or even better than, the NHS. Consider how the vastly improved network of roads in the south, once a treasure-trove of jokes about pot-holes, is now far superior to the roads we have in the north. If the will is there it could be done, and done quickly. And what could be a more important important task for a government than creating support for the people’s health?
Brexit, we are told, has changed everything in terms of Irish reunification. Because Ireland north and south might be better off united, people who haven’t considered reunification are now having a second look. By way of contrast, I remember interviewing a unionist politician a few years back; he made it clear that nothing, including financial benefits, would tempt unionists into accepting a reunited Ireland.
There seems a contradiction here: on the one hand we’re told of unionism’s stubborn loyalty to the union with Britain; on the other Protestants such as the farmer with the border-straddling farm appear to think in economic terms about reunification. Certainly the effect on people’s pocket was a theme played endlessly by the Better Together grouping in the Scottish referendum, and personal finances look like becoming a major theme in the next Scottish referendum as well. So maybe the defiant words of my unionist politician aren’t replicated fully in the real world.
Personally, I’ve always thought that self-determination shouldn’t come down to the pound (or euro) in your pocket, but maybe I’m part of a small band of cock-eyed idealists. Certainly the people in the south appear to let their patriotism melt in the heat of financial figures: a few years ago a poll found that 66% of people in the south would favour a reunited Ireland in their life-time; but that figure shrank to 31% if reunification were to involve a higher level of taxation.
It’s sometimes tempting to think that were it not for those pesky republicans in the north, the notion of a reunited Ireland would quickly wither and die.
It wouldn’t be fruitful to speculate on how those “pesky Republicans” perhaps hardened attitudes throughout the Island and made talk of a UI more difficult. But we’re past all that now.
Have people in the Dictionary Republic not noticed that the ‘United’ Kingdom isn’t – ‘united’ that is?
Scotland is half way out, the ‘No’s’ at the last referendum were elderly people concerned – entirely legitimately – about pensions and so forth.
The hard-line Unionists (mostly anti-Taig / ‘Tarry’ bigots) ace in the hole was the big Labour vote in the west of Scotland. That’s gone, probably for ever. Greater Glasgow / Larnarkshire Taigs are now voting for and joining the SNP.
I saw the same interview and I thought, “‘A United Ireland in a United Kingdom’, doesn’t that sound like a good idea.”
Perhaps an Irish Unionist Party would receive some votes after all.
United under the Queen of England? Maybe we want a secular republican state.
I know you do.
Maybe others want something else.
Maybe it’s all in the melting pot?
“Maybe it’s all in the melting pot?”
Not unless unionists show up and discuss it, it isn’t.
I wont be selling it that’s for sure.
Did you notice the farmer was called Davy Crockett? But I think there the resemblence (if history is to be believed) ended
On listening to Davy Crockett, no less, out in Tir Conaill I thought, how easy it is for a unionist in the Republic of Ireland to freely express his desires on media. In that portion of our country, yet occupied against the will of the people, it is significantly more difficult to express one’s desires.
If one should like to check this, telephone the BBC morning and early afternoon phone in shows to see how far dissenting, or what they consider dissenting, opinion travels?
I think he was in Fermanagh,Mark? But all this welfare state etc is only the top coat. Underneath it’s the fenians that are the real problem and always will be. They have got their Bantu homeland in the Free state. Why aren’t they satisfied? Whereas us poor paddies can’t understand who gave England the moral right to interfere in our country?
He was in Derry/Donegal pal, i live near there
FERMANAGH from HEAVEN
Conor Cruise liked to use ‘ethnic cleanse’
32 used give the Deep Thinker the bends
Stop ! Top of the Agenda
For neo 32-County Enda
How to influence dreary p. , win friends !
“Meanwhile, if Micheal Martin and Fianna Fail or even Enda Kenny and Fine Gael are serious about the idea of a reunited Ireland, the one thing they could do that would have considerable impact on those who waver between the status quo and reunification would be to establish a Health Service that is as good as, or even better than, the NHS”…!!
So Jude – Why hasn’t it been done long ago and this “Brave New Ireland” ..?? A country fit for Protestants to live in ..!!! The fucking irony of it all makes me want to smash something ..!!!
I agree with you completely, Ernesider – it’s like cleaning the house cos the neighbours will be calling. There should have been a proper health service 50 years ago. If Cuba can do it, why can’ the south?
Pegasus – Patrick Kavanagh
My soul was an old horse
Offered for sale in twenty fairs
I offered him to the Church – the buyers
Were little men who feared his unusual airs.
One said: �Let him remain unbid
In the wind and rain and hunger
Of sin and we will get him –
With the winkers thrown in for nothing.’
http://webpages.charter.net/gdsbmmllp/kavanaug.htm
If the Free state was getting a subvention (handout) from a foreign country like we do in the six counties, I’m sure they could have a magnificent welfare state too. And don’t forget the unionists voted against the welfare state being extended to the six counties in the late 40s.
JSA in the South is €188 per week.(£163) In the North it’s £75 per week plus all the hoops and harassment you have to go through. In fact 3 or so years ago a Council of Europe report said that UK benefit rates were inadequate.
look at the money that was pumped into this place over the years.not a penny reached the ordinary punters in any of the worst areas.maybe let people sign on each side of the border,sort of ease them into it.money well spent in the long run.
I saw the same programme and couldn’t help but think just how odd it might be to live on a farm straddling the unseen border…maybe with an invisible line through the house, even. You might say he has the very best of both worlds…or possibly the very worst , but is he only plunking for reunification of Ireland within the UK because of the NHS ? As you say , if that’s all it is , surely a really great health service could be arranged here on an all -Ireland national basis?.
We’re made aware that the Cuban health service and the health service in India are far superior to our own experience here, so you’d imagine that would the kind of project our politicians would be looking at and studying first. Many of the doctors and nurses coming to us from the Indian continent ,or trained in the Phillipines ,are years ahead of us here, which is why they are snapped up. They’ve been trained to a superior standard and aren’t slow about pointing it out to their colleagues. Surely that could be addressed.
As for roads and so on , it’s looking as though the likes of Nelson McCausland and his DUP buddies don’t really care about such inconveniences anyway, just as long as they are rid of the pesky EU , its meddling and its money. They ‘ll be happy enough with the return to the pre- EU scenario we all fondly remember before the subsidies when the roads everywhere were pot-holed , farmers hadn’t a pot to piss in and lived in little tumbledown cottages with raggy fields and managed without £100,000 tractors….just as long as they can hang onto Theresa May’s shirt-tail at Westminster as she jumps over the cliff edge.
PK
“You might say he has the very best of both worlds…or possibly the very worst , but is he only plunking for reunification of Ireland within the UK because of the NHS ?”
Well, I’m one of those people who think that nationality and nationhood is worth more than money – but isn’t a good-free-at-the-point-of-care-health-service worth quite a bit?
I think in the case of our Davy Crockett here , the NHS was the stated deal-breaker . I personally think that a first rate health service should be the foundation stone of any society, but in a tiny island like ours that is economically divided and thus weakened somewhat, that might not be easily achieved without re-unification first.You might argue that the division is what holds everyone back and creates the economic and even the identity insecurity. If we could simply all accept that we are at base simply Irishmen, as everyone else in the world, looking in with a cooler gaze ,already accepts , our identity crisis would likely dissapate quickly .
The NHS was the reason that our interviewee proffered and is what he actually said was his reason .Of course that may have just been a flip thing to say and it’s possible that this border -straddler was also insecure about his identity ,however he might have perceived it. I’m imagining that he was possibly a british unionist because of his namesake.Here in our little corner there will always be an inherent insecurity it seems. It’s back to this thing about perceiving “british” as a nationality when it is not really and the “british” living in England and Wales seeing us as inherently “Irish” anyway and seeing themselves as Welsh and English . It depends on how sure of personal identity any one of us might be whether or not we are Irish inside a United Kindom or Irish standing on our own two feet.
i see myself as Irish and it really simplifies my idea of myself….an Irishman born on the island of Ireland ..as simple as that.
You see the reverse argument can be made for living within either a financially poor or possibly richer New Ireland should we leave the uK.Many like Mr mcCausland’s opposite numbers would be glad to be rid of Britain at any price just as he wants to dsimilarly ditch the EU..He doesn’t care . . Some Irish nationalists don’t care whether or not they are less well- off for a time if they can only become independant of Britain just as some of the English voted to be free of Europe and somehow claw back some missing sense of themselves that they feel they have lost as Englishmen. They might and probably will be all the poorer for their choice …at least for the foreseeable future but they don’t vare how poor they are going to be.
That will be the day that Enda McLafferty or any of the “uncle Toms” on the BBC would question “unionist wisdoms”.Also I am amazed how the BBC always find people in their vox pops who would be opposed to SF and all the key issues they stand for.At the recent election,their Short Strand vox pop could’nt find a single person who was going to vote.Amazingly turnout in Short Strand was 75% on polling day and their Coalisland vox pop showed similar apathy despite a voter turnout in the 80% plus range.
It’s in BBC Northern Ireland’s interests to continually talk down the prospects of a United Ireland. After all it’s reporters, producers, directors etc etc will be out of a job when it happens.
It won’t matter if we end up in a UI, UK or a EU super state M Moore.
Hugo Duncan will prevail lol.
Good article Jude. There is some food for thought there. I was just thinking today Irish citizens in the North are being discriminated against based on where they were born on the island. Should we not have representation in the Dáil? Should we not be given the opportunity to fully part-take in the life of the nation?
Why is Brexit concentrating on the border: Money, Money, Money, it’s a rich man’s world. Why is Europe in a fit of turmoil over immigration: Money, money, money, it’s a rich man’s world. Why are people talking about a UI: Money, money, money, it’s a rich man’s world. Meanwhile there’s famine in Africa? ” Put up whatever flag you like, it’s too late to save your soul with bunting”