Will Brexit deliver Irish reunification?

[Drunkvet]

Just that- will a united Ireland be an after effect of Brexit? Let's be honest, without EU money NI is going to cost the UK government ££££; NI has always been the annoying, problem child. Both UK and EU have said there will be no hard border but, surely, there will have to be a border and customs control somewhere? So it would make sense to have the border around the island of Britain (Eng/Scot/wal)
The demographics in N.Ireland are changing. We no longer have a unionist majority at Stormont. Well TBH we don't have a devolved govmt at all ATM but that's a whole, other thread.
While I can't see a UI this year or next year I do feel that Brexit has brought it forward and there will be a border poll in the next 5-10 years.

Well Peter given the endless roaring and tub thumping about TEAM GB every 4 years, it seems to be a simply monumental UK concern from the outside looking in.

Sports have huge vast access to funds in the UK. In Ireland it's pennies (unless you're the Dublin GAA team )

You may not care, but others may.

Elspeth, as I understand it, someone on €20k pays much more tax in the U.K. than in ROI ( this reverses for higher earners). Similarly unemployment benefits are much higher in ROI - over double (less than €100 per week v €200 approx). Of course, this adds to your argument that ROI could not afford to extend its benefits to NI, particularly as there are few higher earners there to pay higher tax rates.

Of course you can have facts about a hypothesis!! That's the stupidest thing I've read here in a long time, and that is saying something. How do you think you formulate a hypothesis? You look at the FACTS, and build on those, using more facts to support your logic.
You can tell that your hypothetical money won't come flooding in by knowing the facts of the situation: mainly that we don't have said hypothetical money and even if we did, there is no good hypothetical reason why we would want to pour it into NI when we have plenty of other things we could be spending it on!

Elspeth, as this has descended into so many false facts and downright silliness, you can be only playing the thread for laughs

With Brexit, I think there will be a majority vote for unification in NI within the next 20 years - whether ROI will take us is a different matter of course. Demographically, NI is moving away from the entrenched Protestant majority. This link shows religion by age in NI - in 20 years time NI will look very different and have a population much more interested in what is economically beneficial rather than in entrenched Unionist identity.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Northern_Ireland#/media/File:Religion_by_age_in_northern_ireland_2011.png

Add into the mix the EU migrants of recent years, and I expect they will also in the long-term vote to be part of an EU country, rather than the English nationalism that is Brexit Britain.

A hard Brexit is unquestionably a disaster for NI, and it is mind-boggling to me that the DUP could not see this. With re-unification, Ireland has a chance to be a normal European country, with a good education system and the potential to attract multinationals to NI in the same way as has been done successfully in ROI. Whilst NI is not self-funding, any British exit would need British and EU subsidies for a transition period. Whilst this isn't ideal, it is the only way NI can ever become a self-sustaining entity.

Before Brexit this was unthinkable as there wasn't the push factor but Theresa May is certainly providing it.

During the Troubles, polling in the mainland U.K. showed rUK voters wanted a United Ireland, to be rid of both the bombing and also the expense of subsidising NI.
However, neither part of Ireland was in favour of reunification, so the rUk has had to suck it up.

Brexit has changed attitudes in both parts of Ireland and has for the first time made reunification thinkable and feasible.

• 65 % of people living in the Republic of Ireland now say they wish to see a United Ireland

blogs.spectator.co.uk/2017/03/theresa-may-right-troubled-prospect-irish-reunification/

• More unionist are thinking the previously unthinkable and starting to map out a possible process and what they'd want from a United Ireland

www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/general-election/comment/why-unionists-should-discuss-irish-unity-now-from-a-position-of-strength-and-not-weakness-35633437.html

Who would foot the bill for reunification ?

A combination of the EU, the UK and the US - the powerful Irish American lobby are the most fervent supporters of a United Ireland; both Republicans & Democrats have always fawned on the Irish American vote.