[https://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2023/11/13/news/stormont\_suspension\_fuels\_greater\_debate\_around\_irish\_unity\_says\_new\_poll-3764771/](https://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2023/11/13/news/stormont_suspension_fuels_greater_debate_around_irish_unity_says_new_poll-3764771/)

The debate around constitutional change is likely to intensify the longer the devolved institutions are suspended, according to new research.

More than half of Alliance voters – 54.5% – say that if the assembly and executive remain dormant due to the DUP boycott it would encourage them to believe a united Ireland would be a better option, according to the latest Irish New-Institute of Irish Studies-University of Liverpool survey.

Alliance voters and supporters of other so-called middle ground parties are regarded as key in swaying support for Irish unity.

Notably, a quarter of Ulster Unionist voters (25.6%) believe Stormont’s continued suspension would result in greater consideration of constitutional change.

DUP and TUV voters mostly reject the notion that the boycott fuels the debate around Irish unity, with 73.2% and 80% respectively disagreeing with the premise that the suspended institutions makes a united Ireland a more attractive prospect. However, more than quarter of DUP supporters (26.8%) and one-in-five of their TUV counterparts (20%) don’t completely dismiss the idea.

[https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124623787-4028d6d5-75e2-4410-ab60-b2a04593bf13.jpg](https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124623787-4028d6d5-75e2-4410-ab60-b2a04593bf13.jpg)

More than three quarters of Sinn Féin voters (78.4) support the premise that a dormant Stormont increases the likelihood of Irish unity, with 69% of SDLP supporters believing likewise.

Elsewhere, the survey found opponents of the Windsor Framework among DUP supporters are a minority. While the 39.7% who oppose February’s EU-UK deal represent the largest cohort among supporters of Sir Jeffrey Donaldson’s party, they are outnumbered by those who are ambivalent (32.2%), those who don’t oppose the framework (17.1%) and those who don’t know (11.1%). Little more than one-in-ten Ulster Unionist voters (12.9%) oppose the Windsor Framework, compared to almost three-quarters of TUV voters (72.5).

[https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124737839-1c82ab6d-e214-4d38-8250-fecde56b809e.jpg](https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124737839-1c82ab6d-e214-4d38-8250-fecde56b809e.jpg)

The polling found that a majority believe the restoration of the devolved institutions trumps concerns around the Windsor Framework. Almost six in every 10 unionist respondents (59.4%) believe that while there are issues with February’s revised post-Brexit trading arrangements, they are not as important as restoring the assembly and challenging public service needs. Almost half of DUP supporters (48.5%) agree that restoration of devolution is the priority, with less than one quarter (23.2%) disagreeing. A clear majority of voters for Stormont’s other parties, including 74.4 per cent of Ulster Unionist supporters, prioritise Stormont’s return.

[https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/125705979-7daf0e51-3277-4393-be09-b8c7cf84acb2.jpg](https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/125705979-7daf0e51-3277-4393-be09-b8c7cf84acb2.jpg)

The survey shows overwhelming support for the dual market access enabled by the Northern Ireland Protocol. More than three-quarters of unionists (77.9%) believe access to both the EU and UK markets is crucial to the regional economy, with just 7% disagreeing. Support for dual access is even greater among nationalists (86.5%) and those who regard themselves as neither nationalist or unionist (83.7%).

[https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124954408-87683623-07ac-4a5e-8d98-66c16f64df80.jpg](https://binaries.irishnews.com/2023/11/11/124954408-87683623-07ac-4a5e-8d98-66c16f64df80.jpg)

* The polling was carried out between October 26 and November 3 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.1%. 

by Constant__18

3 comments

  1. It’s simple. We have an issue regarding how we are ruled from two sides of the community. One side of the community has decided they either win elections or shut down the government to the detriment of the nation and its people.

    Westminster will oversee the transition but the road to a united Ireland is already here, it’s a matter of when and as someone who always wanted to see this I’d like to extend my thank you to the DUP past and present, Jamie Bryson, Brexiteers and whoever else helped us see how the union is not feasible for NI.

  3. >More than half of Alliance voters – 54.5% – say that if the assembly and executive remain dormant due to the DUP boycott it would encourage them to believe a united Ireland would be a better option

    ‘Encourage them to believe…’

    They can’t commit to anything, can they?

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