Sinn Féin calls for united Ireland referendum within 5 years - The Irish ... United Ireland 'now more likely than ever' - The Telegraph One step closer to a united Ireland? Explaining Sinn Féin's electoral ... Not so unthinkable anymore, the UK government would not stop N.I. joining the Republic if they so wished, in fact they would be delighted.
As usual you are sidestepping the issue. Ireland are quite happy with their current status and repeat time after time they are not leaving the EU. This is not even an issue, so why suggest otherwise. Northern Ireland is currently held hostage by the DUP. They did very well for the people who live there to extract vast sums from the government just so that the PM could stay in Downing Street. The DUP are 100% against a vote on a united Ireland, so until they go it will not happen. So in the current situation, what are your options to solve the cross border issues. Apart from splitting off NI from the UK, you have come up with nothing. There must be a plan otherwise you would not have voted for it, but it is being kept from my eyes.
Like 99% of the British public who clearly decided to leave the EU the Irish border was not part of their decision making. It is those involved to find an acceptable solution if they do not take up those two perfectly rational options I put forward. I have highlighted one serious rift the Republic currently have with the eurocrats if they carry out their threats on tax reform. The DUP will always be against a united Ireland but I'm sure the catholic population is growing much faster than the unionists, this may explain the recent very close election result before the general election.
Northern Ireland report: Statistically the future is Catholic and female ... A united Ireland doesn't seem that far off.
Are you serious???? Because in any sensible debate you would be liable for censure for making untrue comments of this nature....
I don't think you can have much understanding of the issues SH... this is the biggest hot potato in Ireland and you can be sure that the DUP, shoring up the Govt, will no let the Govt go anyway down that road.... Clearly would be a great option for many, and looks sensible from outside, but a trip round Belfast or Derry would show some of the tensions
Catholic population set to dwarf Protestants in years ahead - Belfast ... Oh dear, how do you manage to get it wrong time and time again?
Amongst the many sound bites which have become currency over the last year - 'Brexit means Brexit', 'The will of the people' etc. the expression 'Hard Border' or 'taking control over our borders' is one of the most difficult for me - what does it mean ? I know what a soft border is - I experienced it trecking in the Pyrenees and not knowing if I was in France or Spain. I know what a really hard border was - I experienced it entering the GDR. in the 80s. But what of Britain. It appears on the hard side already - I arrive (and queue for what seems a ridiculous time) show my passport (and my wife shows her German one) - it is scanned to make sure we are not criminals, and they look me up and down to make sure I am who I say I am (a mirror would confirm this). This is all being done a second time (having already been done by the British authorities in Brussels before departure). So, what more do you want when you talk about a hard border - it seems hard enough already. What changes do the Brexiters want which make the process harder at the point of entry ? Do they require that my wife has a visa ? Britain already does control its borders - so what on earth do the Brexiters mean. Can they envisage turning back legal Germans, French of Dutch ? Or maybe stamping their passports ? Or does the 'hard border' mean something which happens once in the country ie. access to the job market etc. I would like one of the Brexiters (ie. SH) to actually define what 'hard border' means before hypothesizing what it could mean for Ireland.
What I, and presumably most Brexiters voted for was the ability for the UK government to decide on the quantity and the quality of potential immigrants from the EU. Most countries around the world have this as a naturally accepted right. Due to the UK's financial successes, compared to most of the EU, in recent years there has been unacceptably high levels of demand of migration from other struggling EU nations to the UK. The EU's unreasonable refusal to accept this anomaly caused Brexit. Other EU nations, i.e. Sweden and France are now requesting flexibility on this issue.
Rubbish SH. The numbers of EU. immigrants to the UK. are significantly less than in many other EU. countries. You have avoided my central question - from every 20 people entering the UK. 19 are tourists - how do you tell the difference ? How do you imagine the experience of crossing your 'hard border' will be different for them after Brexit ?
Well I have just read the article and whilst indicating birth rates as you say, it also indicates the traditional corellation between religion and nationality can no longer be held as significant. Again the inference you assert as some sort of direction progression is unfounded. Never mind the fact that a major proportion of the population feel (hope not too wishy washy for you) British. It would be a seismic change for such a population to vote to Unite with the Republic
I have no idea what hard or soft border actually means. I suppose after Brexit you will just show your passport as you do now. If the UK government decide to ask citizens of certain countries to produce visas then I'm quite happy with that. I can only tell you why many of the majority of UK voters chose Brexit, I'm not bothered if you agree or not.
What is clear is that the dominant influence the Unionists have held is rapidly reducing as indicated by a recent election. It would be a seismic change but not impossible with the rise of the catholic population in N.I. You may be the only one unable to see the trend.
Ireland will strongly oppose the EU's attempt to mess with national tax control. <img class="lazy-fallback" src="http://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/dynamic/139/183x122/838778_1.jpg" alt="EU Ireland Brexit corporate tax rate Commission eurozone IBEC" title="EU Ireland Brexit corporate tax rate Commission eurozone IBEC"> Ireland gears up for EU backlash: Businesses furious at bloc’s low-tax crackdown
'ask citizens of certain countries' ? You should bury the idea that you can differentiate between different Europeans - Britain is not free to negotiate separate deals with different EU. countries, they can only negotiate with the EU. as a whole - ie. what applies to Rumanians also applies to Dutchmen. If Britain suddenly requires visas from Rumanians or Poles - then France will require visas from the British - the EU. will stand together on this.
Post Brexit the UK government will have the ability to decide on what it wants. I expect the best and easiest route is to negotiate with the EU as a block.
So Liam Fox wants to do trade deal with the Gulf Co-operation Council as it would be better to be part of an agreement with a group rather than individual nations. This group has based it's model on the EU. It has had an internal market since 1983, a customs union since 2015, and what irony, free movement of people and goods from 2018. Let's just see sense. This is the way that the world is going.
The excellent Lam Fox is preparing deals with all kinds of nations, even the EU will have a chance to continue its lucrative business with the UK on favourable terms.
I agree on this point. My whole rationale for staying in.. is that, in spite of many issues, the future is in blocs of countries. A country outside of a bloc with less leverage is really in a weaker position.
