NI Conservatives’ spokesman, Trevor Ringland, has said that “it’s time to forget about border polls for the foreseeable future and instead work to being people in Northern Ireland together”. Trevor was reacting to a BBC Spotlight opinion poll which showed almost 80 per cent of people here want to remain in the United Kingdom.
“The BBC’s poll provides even more proof that the last thing Northern Ireland needs is a divisive border referendum, which will stoke up sectarian feeling and create a sense of uncertainty about the future”, Trevor emphasised. “Despite this overwhelming evidence, pro-Union politicians from the executive parties are failing to persuade many people within the community that our place in the United Kingdom has never been more secure.”
“The challenge is to make that clear and to reach out to the vast majority, across all communities, who want to make Northern Ireland work, rather than retreating into an outdated, single community unionist bloc. Let’s forget about the border poll, which we can revisit, if necessary, in another 25 years and concentrate on building relationships within Northern Ireland, across Ireland and across the UK. And instead of creating insecurity about the Britishness of this part of the UK, let’s be confident and get on with participating fully in the politics of our kingdom”.