The politics of debating Irish unity

Sir, – Mike Tomlinson (Letters, December 2nd) makes some excellent points about the cost of supporting Northern Ireland, which as he correctly points out will be shared across the whole of the island; the North will undoubtedly play its full part in this regard.

However, while we all, people and politicians alike, talk rather grandly about broad aspirations on unification, to be agreed in accordance with a long-standing mechanism and the necessary attendant vote, we must be honest about how the “politics” of the process of unification affects a government’s current and ongoing view of such a possibility.

The truth of the matter is that though a government dare not say so in public, the process of unification is the most frightening and daunting prospect. No one in government currently wants to deal with such a problem. Why? The unknown cost for a start, and the complexities of future negotiations over who does what, when, how and with whom, etc, and across the full range of current government activities, both national and international.

That’s what it’s going to be like for a government, wrestling with this conundrum and the politics of unification; it will to all intents and purposes be like wrestling with a blancmange.

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I suspect most of the current Government Ministers are even now heaving a huge sigh of relief that at least none of them will be around when and if it happens! – Yours, etc,

ALASTAIR CONAN,

Coulsdon,

London.