Coalition’s role in NI political impasse

Sir, – Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has been quoted in the Financial Times as stating that the British government is not engaging with Dublin on the current impasse in the North. Sadly, it has become obvious in recent times that the Irish Government’s former central role in Northern Ireland has been reduced to one of a bystander.

In the past, the Irish Government had a definite and important position as the leader of a pro-united Ireland coalition. This included itself, Sinn Féin, the SDLP and Irish America. It was based on strong links with these groups and good personal relations. It would have been impossible to reach a settlement without the Irish Government’s input and imprimatur. This was the situation when I worked at the Belfast Agreement talks under Bertie Ahern. Today, that powerful coalition no longer exists, and the question must be asked as to what Mr Varadkar and his Government can bring to the table. His relations with the leading nationalist party, Sinn Féin, are poor.

In addition, the Taoiseach is reaping the result of his virulent anti-Brexit position during the British/EU negotiations. While Ireland was fully entitled to voice its disappointment at the British withdrawal from the EU, Mr Varadkar and his lieutenant Simon Coveney went well beyond the niceties of normal bilateral relations in their strident rhetoric. It was the antithesis of the cooperative approach which led to the Belfast Agreement. This has made our Taoiseach a disliked figure within the Tory party. During visits to Westminster, I have witnessed at first hand that strong anti-Varadkar sentiment. A much better policy line after Brexit would have been to try and be a bridge between London and Brussels, not the cat’s paw of the EU. The policy then was very short-sighted.

It also severely damaged the Irish Government’s relations and links with the unionist community, something successive Irish governments worked on.

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Therefore, I am afraid that the current Irish Government have themselves to blame in part for their current ineffectiveness in relation to the North. – Your, etc,

RAY BASSETT,

(Former Irish ambassador),

Castleknock,

Dublin 15.