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20th Jul 2018

One of Theresa May’s aides couldn’t pronounce “Fermanagh”

Carl Kinsella

Fermanagh

As Prime Minister Theresa May gears up for a speech about Brexit in Northern Ireland…

A speech which is destined to go well, please everyone, and reflect the all-round success of Brexit thus far, there has been some surprise over a comment made by one of her aides.

As the Irish Times sought clarification on where exactly Ms. May would be visiting while in the north, they ran into some difficulty, noting that a phone call to the 10 Downing Street press office yielded an exchange that essentially sums up the British government’s attitude towards Northern Ireland.

Asked where May would be going, a member of the press office reportedly responded “The prime minister will be in — I’ll spell it for you in case I mispronounce it — F-e-r-m-a-n-a-g-h.” The same member of the press office went on to confirm that they were not entirely sure where within the county that the prime minister would be.

May will give the speech in Belfast on Friday morning, and is expected to reaffirm the UK’s commitment to avoiding a hard border in the North.

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