Is there a future?

Posted on: 12 February 2021 by Brian Lacey - Party Chairman in Progressive Unionist Party

Has the United Kingdom got a future? Has Northern Ireland got a future? In a post Brexit world, these are questions I am asked on a regular basis.

I freely admit that I voted remain in the EU referendum. Not as a rampant European, but as someone who believed the desire for Brexit was being driven primarily by English nationalists, who apparently were oblivious or unconcerned as to the effect a leave vote would have on the status quo of the United Kingdom.
 
As a Northern Ireland unionist, I am only too aware of how divisive and dangerous the pursuance of a political agenda, via fervent nationalism at its core, can be.
 
Having pride in your nation’s culture and heritage is to be admired but not when it causes division and alienation among its own citizens it is to be avoided.
 
The year 2021 sees Northern Ireland celebrate the centenary of its foundation. Throughout those one hundred years, there has always been an element within Northern Ireland that has refused to recognise its legitimacy. An element who were prepared to use extreme violence in pursuit of their political objective, to bring an end to Northern Ireland’s position within the United Kingdom.
 
The fact that those endeavours failed, highlights not only the unionist community’s resolve in maintaining their British identity, but also indicates that a large number of Irish nationalists were unconvinced, that leaving the United Kingdom would be the best option for them.
 
Even in a post Brexit Northern Ireland, I believe a substantial number of nationalists realise that living in the United Kingdom makes sense.  From a pragmatic perspective, it is a fact that the cost of living in the Republic of Ireland is substantially higher than that in Northern Ireland.  And of course the UK’s National Health Service provides free healthcare at the point of delivery, a fact that is respected and envied throughout the world. The Common Travel Area is another example of how an arrangement between the UK and Ireland, continues to benefit citizens from both jurisdictions in so many practical ways.
 
Finally, when someone exclaimed surprise that I, as a staunch unionist, would not vote to leave the EU, and thus help to get our “country” back, I explained that I had never felt less British because the UK was a member of the EU.

Similarly, I do not believe that an Irish nationalist should feel any less Irish because they choose to reside in Northern Ireland, or indeed any other part of the multi ethnic, multi-cultural and pluralist society that is the United Kingdom.
 
Even within a post Brexit United Kingdom.
 
Brian Lacey
Party Chairman
Progressive Unionist Party of NI.