Britain doesn't care about Northern Ireland

The argument

After a poll conducted by YouGov in March of 2020 found that 54 percent of British citizens would not be bothered if Northern Ireland left the United Kingdom, Britain's overall disinterest in the future of the region was confirmed. Exposing this weak link between Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom, this recent survey also reported a 41 percent increase from when they conducted the same study in October 2019. This sentiment is believed to have originated from the lack of Irish history taught in school. As a result, many British citizens claim to feel distant from Ireland as opposed to other regions in the United Kingdom like that of Scotland and Wales. An additional belief that Northern Ireland is a risk to peace and a financial burden to the rest of the United Kingdom remains at the forefront of this argument. Specifically, in looking at HM Treasury figures from 2016-2017, it is made clear that the UK spends more in supporting Northern Ireland than it does to remain in the EU. This attitude is again reflected in numerous other economic areas such as the increasing gap in unemployment between Northern Ireland and the remaining regions in the UK.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Over the course of the past three years, the UK government has offered up £2.5 billion of financial support and flexibility for the Northern Ireland Executive. The UK government is committed to ensuring the needs of Northern Ireland and this is likewise properly reflected in the future UK shared Prosperity Fund, which will not only benefit Northern Ireland but all parts of the UK. Thus, if Britain truly did not care for Northern Ireland, why would they keep providing financial support to the region? If Britain truly did not care for the future of Northern Ireland, they would have encouraged their independence or reunification with the Republic of Ireland. Instead, Northern Ireland remains supported despite featuring the highest poverty rates in the UK. Therefore, it is clear that Britain does truly care about the destiny of Northern Ireland.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] The poll shows something narrower than the premise claims. Indifference to a constitutional outcome is not indifference to a place or the people in it, and asking whether someone would be bothered measures the intensity of an opinion rather than the presence of concern. The 41 per cent is also reported ambiguously — a rise of 41 points in five months would be implausible, while a 41 per cent relative increase is a far smaller movement — and polling through this period was heavily shaped by the Brexit negotiations over the Irish border. [Rejecting P2] The financial comparison does not hold: the subvention to Northern Ireland and the UK's net contribution to the EU are different kinds of transfer, the first internal spending on public services within the state and the second a membership payment. Higher spending is in any case as readily read as engagement, which is the counter's point. Above all, the conclusion does not follow from either premise: opinion in Great Britain is one input among many, and under the Belfast Agreement the constitutional question is settled by concurrent majorities in Northern Ireland and the Republic rather than by British sentiment.