Northern Ireland finally got a functional government on Saturday (February 3), two years after its Parliament was paralysed over new trade rules between the European Union and the United Kingdom necessitated by Brexit. The new first minister, Michelle O’Neill, has created history, as she belongs to Sinn Féin, a political party linked to the paramilitary group Irish Republican Army, which has a long history of fighting the British. Why was Northern Ireland's government not working? What has changed now, and what effect will it have? We explain. First, Northern Ireland's unique position Northern Ireland was created in May 1921 by partitioning Ireland, and consists of the six northeastern counties of the island. In 1922, the rest of Ireland gained independence from the British (today’s Republic of Ireland, with its capital in Dublin). Northern Ireland remained with the United Kingdom, but tensions simmered between the side loyal to the Crown, mostly Protestants, and the faction wanting to join the Republic, mostly Catholics. Today, the side loyal to the British Union are called unionists, while those who support a united and free Ireland are called nationalists. By the end of the 1960s, a bloody conflict was raging in Northern Ireland among those who wished to remain with the UK and those who wanted to join Ireland. The British Army and the police, frequently accused of excesses, worsened the violence. Finally, on April 10, 1998, the Good Friday Agreement was signed to end the bloodshed, and gave Northern Ireland a unique system of governance. Thus, both unionists and nationalists share power in Stormont, the Parliament buildings in Belfast. Both sides have to cooperate for the government to work. While the faction that wins more votes in elections gets the post of First Minister, the other side gets the chair of Deputy First Minister, with equal power. Collapse of parliament in 2022 After the UK (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) left the European Union, Northern Ireland now shared a land border with an EU member, the Republic of Ireland. Since the EU and the UK have different product standards, border checks would be necessary before goods could move from Northern Ireland to Ireland. However, given the history of violence here, it was decided to leave this border alone, and checks were introduced between Great Britain (England, Scotland, and Wales) and Northern Ireland instead. This was called the Northern Ireland Protocol. This system angered the unionists, who believed it undermined Northern Ireland's position with the UK. Thus, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, leader of Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), refused to allow government formation after Northern Ireland went to polls in May 2022, and did not allow Stormont to function. The new deal Various efforts were made to resolve the problem, including the Windsor Framework of February 2023, which introduced a system of green lanes for goods that would stay in Northern Ireland and red lanes (with more checks) for those that would go to the EU. It also brought in the ‘Stormont Brake’, which allowed Northern Ireland lawmakers and London to veto any EU regulation they believed affected the region adversely. However, for the DUP, these measures were far too little. Now, a new deal has been reached, published as a command paper called 'Safeguarding the Union' by the UK government. Its three main points, as stated by the UK's Institute for Government, include: The green lane is now called the UK Internal Market channel, on which checks and customs paperwork have been reduced further, to only “risk and intelligence-based checks” relating to “criminality, smuggling and disease”; there's a “Internal Market Guarantee” which says that at least 80% of Great Britain to Northern Ireland goods will pass through this channel; the UK government will extend a £3.3 billion package to help Northern Ireland's finances. The new government's long list of tasks While matters like security, foreign policy, tax laws, immigration, etc. are looked after by the UK government for Northern Ireland, its devolved government has powers over local matters, such as health, social services, etc. The prolonged deadlock had affected public services, while public sector employees were protesting delayed salary hikes. With a new First Minister taking power, the business of governance will finally take off.
