Thread by @nialloconghaile

Interesting article by @Saraita101 on what is becoming one of the geographical oddities of the broader European space, - a kind of St Martin or Campione d'Italia or Büsingen writ large - Northern Ireland

1

theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

The main take away is that NI's voting patterns and ethnic makeup are changing radically. That, for the UK union, is damaging, but not fatal.

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It is clear that many NI people are much more comfortable with a both or neither identity: being Irish presents less of an issue for young unionists.

However, there is one fact that really overwhelms all and has not been addressed.

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Brexit.

This stems from the massive strategic mistake that the major unionist parties made in either backing the Brexit vote or switching to the Brexit experiment after the ref had been won.

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Unionism is now politically and culturally tied to Brexit.

This matters because Brexit - insular, reactionary, europhobic, repressive, denying opportunity - is not what young voters of all stripes want.

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As England continues to sink into the Brexit mud, with human excrement on the beach as the metaphor, and Scotland eyes the exit door, and Brexit Britain become increasingly reactionary, populist are aligned with Putin and Trump, where does that leave pól. unionism?

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Remember that NI will be spared the worst of Brexit thanks to the protocol (#thankEU).

But as GB revenues and trade continue to decline, financial support for NI will drop.

The comparison with Ireland will be stark.

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Brexit has disturbed the equilibrium of everything in the UK.

It will be richly ironic if it is the UK, and not Europe, than breaks up owing to the British Brexit vote.

Ends.