Research prompts calls for Irish government to ‘ramp up’ unity preparations

The Dublin government has been urged to “ramp up” its preparation for potential constitutional change on foot of new research showing a majority of people on both sides of the border believe it is important to plan for the possibility of Irish unity.

Almost two-thirds of voters in the Republic believe it is important to plan for a united Ireland, with more than one-third (36%) saying it is extremely important.

North of the border, 60% of voters believe some form of planning for constitutional change should take place, with 36% saying it is extremely important.

The findings of the ARINS/Irish Times survey show unionist respondents in the north make a clear distinction between planning for, and attainment of, a united Ireland.

While unionist voters in the north are averse to Irish unity, almost four in every ten (38%) of Protestant respondents said it was important to plan for constitutional change.

Catholic voters north of the border also gave differing responses on how much of a priority planning for unity should be given versus actual attainment.

Some 53% said planning for unity was extremely important, while 30% said thought the same about achieving it.

The lessons of Brexit and the UK government’s failure to have a plan in place for leaving the EU appear to heavily influence people’s responses.

The research’s authors also identify two attitudes among the pro-unity lobby across Ireland – what they term the ‘gung-ho’ cohort who want to see a border poll as soon as possible and are less concerned about planning, and those who are more cautious about a referendum and want to see a greater focus on preparation.

Last week, the same survey showed that support for a united Ireland has increased by seven percentage points in just two years.

The growth in support for unification in Northern Ireland between 2022-24 from 27% to 34% corresponds with a drop in the proportion in favour of maintaining the union, according to the research.

Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway-Walsh TD welcomed the increased support for Irish unity highlighted by the research.

“This ongoing research on constitutional change is very important and should ramp up government action to do the work to prepare for a referendum on Irish unity including the holding of citizens assemblies,” she said.

“It complements the work of civic groups like Ireland’s Future, the work that is being undertaken by the Oireachtas Good Friday Agreement committee as well as the action research work being done through universities here and internationally.”

The Mayo representative said the new administration in Dublin needed to “move from a position of discussion to a position of pro-active planning for the unity referendums”.

“The programme for government states that they ‘remain steadfast in implementing the Good Friday Agreement in full’ – this must include the unity referendum,” she said.