New farce: either not Conservative, or not Unionist

By Tom Miller

I am a fan of the SDLP, all-Ireland politics, the heritage of the civil rights movement, and a big fan of general opposition to terrorist violence from all quarters.

I have no desire to keep the North of Ireland in the UK on a principled basis, because I think it’s economically senseless to try to preserve a border there, and because I think even most mainstream unionists have stron cultural influences from Ireland. On a more political basis, I believe in the right of people in the north of the whole island to self-determination and a political system based on consent, as laid out in the Good Friday agreement. So if there comes a day when the people in those six counties vote to leave the UK, I would support their decision without a quibble. So, in other words, I believe in the principle of Unity by Consent.

This isn’t the same for the Conservatives. Tories have a long tradition of supporting the Unionist cause in Northern Ireland. As is common with conservatives, both the upper and lower case varieties, what you’ve done before always provides a handy template for what you should do next.

The obvious thing then, was to base the future move (a desire to get some line-following MPs from Northern Ireland) on the history (conservative unionism). Add a rather convoluted new name, “Ulster Conservatives and Unionists – New Force”, and you’re ready to go.

The first announcement the new Tories have made is that they plan to make the north of Ireland a corporation tax haven if they come into power nationally (as if Britain itself doesn’t already count as one). Perhaps the idea behind this is to strong-arm business into providing their new endeavour with funds, but a silly idea it remains.
You see, I have no problem with giving regional assemblies tax-varying powers. I would support it in Wales, and I would also support it in Northern Ireland.

Two things, however, are rather striking, when one thinks about this. Firstly, my suspicion is that NI voters, traditionally pretty left wing on economics, would probably rather have more regeneration and social sector spending than tax cuts.

Secondly, one of the biggest criticisms the Tories made of devolution in other regions of the UK was that tax varying powers were wrong, for a number of reasons.

Now they want to vary tax in Northern Ireland, which doesn’t fit their own (in my view incorrect) version of what it means to be a Unionist. But if they failed to cut corporation tax, they’d just be left with old UUP policy, i.e. a much bigger emphasis on Unionism than economic liberalism.

The whole arrangement is messed up in any event; splits are foreseeable. For a start, the Tories are reviled in Northern Ireland, as traitors by the harder unionist communities, aggressors by republicans and nationalists, and as, well, just Tories by everyone else.

Some other little complications in this cosy deal are also apparent; Lady Sylvia Hermon, the only UUP MP, has remained rather quiet about being in an alliance with the Tories. Given the circumstances, anyone would be.