Unionists fear their culture will not be respected in united Ireland, former UUP leader says

Unionists in Northern Ireland fear they will not be culturally respected or protected in a united Ireland, a former leader of the Ulster Unionist Party has said.

Independent unionist MLA Doug Beattie pointed to the treatment of a candidate in last year’s presidential election “who happens to be from the Protestant religion” to support his concerns about a united Ireland.

This was in reference to Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys, who wrote in The Irish Times in September that a “minority tried to weaponise my identity as a Presbyterian woman raised on a rural Border farm”.

“My family and I were subjected to toxic, targeted sectarian abuse,” she said of the election campaign.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1 on Saturday, Beattie also expressed unionists’ concerns about the Republic’s defence capabilities.

He said Ireland “cannot protect itself” and relied on the French navy, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force for protection.

“Things like that make me say to myself, ‘do I want to be part of that country that I don’t feel culturally linked to?’”

Beattie’s comments come as a new Government body, likely to be established under the authority of the Department of the Taoiseach, is to undertake research and preparations for “constitutional futures” of the island.

[ ‘Lots of deep thought has to go into this’: Taoiseach steps up research on Irish unityOpens in new window ]

The three potential future scenarios include: a unitary 32-county all-Ireland state; the continuation of the status quo; and a future united Ireland in which Northern Ireland would remain a devolved entity, maintaining its own separate assembly and government, civil service, public services and police.

Beattie said wanting a united Ireland was a “fair aspiration” for the Irish Government but he “would expect the United Kingdom government to be equally as stringent in standing for the union”.

Welcoming the Government’s initiative, Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald described it as an “important step forward on the road to Irish unity”.

Writing on her social media account on X, the Dublin Central TD said it was “an opportunity we must seize”.

“Preparations must now move forward with urgency, with the resources, ambition and inclusive approach needed to shape our shared future.

[ Doug Beattie: ‘I suddenly found it really difficult to talk to my 13-year-old daughter or my 13-year-old son’Opens in new window ]

“This process must be inclusive from the outset, with everyone having a meaningful opportunity to contribute and have their say in shaping the future of our island,” McDonald said.