What do you think?
Bertie is back folks. But he’s not in favour of a border poll for a united Ireland just yet.
The former Taoiseach has said that the last thing Ireland needs during the Brexit negotiations is a Border poll.
He was keen to stress, when addressing Senators at a meeting of the Seanad’s Special Select Committee on Brexit, that Ireland shouldn’t give the impression to the EU that we’re arguing amongst ourselves on the island of Ireland.
As reported by The Irish Times, Ahern said: “The only time we should have a Border poll in my view and I will argue this for the rest of my life is when we’re in a situation that the nationalists and republicans and a sizeable amount of unionists/loyalists are in favour on the basis of consent.
“Having a sectarian head count is the last thing we need,” he added.
“This is not the time for that. There will be a time and I think we should all work our best to get to that time by winning people over but don’t put it into this debate.”
Ahern’s view is slightly different than that of the UK’s Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn who recently said that he would have no objection to a Border poll in Northern Ireland.
Speaking to BBC’s Andrew Neill, he was asked specifically about the issue of a referendum in Northern Ireland, to which he said: “That’s up to the people of Northern Ireland to decide. If the Northern Ireland Assembly wants to have one then they should be allowed to.”
Sinn Fein leader Michelle O’Neill has said recently that Northern Ireland should hold a referendum on leaving the United Kingdom and joining the Republic of Ireland “as soon as possible”.
“Brexit will be a disaster for the economy, and a disaster for the people of Ireland,” O’Neill told journalists last month, according to Reuters.
“A referendum on Irish unity has to happen as soon a possible.”
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