Voters in Northern Ireland support a core part of the post-Brexit trade deal that aims to keep the Border as open for trade and electricity as it was before the UK quit the EU, according to a new poll.
The “testing the temperature” study by Queen’s University Belfast comes ahead of an upcoming Assembly vote on a key mechanism of the Windsor Framework, known as the democratic consent vote.
The framework agreement was drawn up between the UK and EU last February and replaced the controversial protocol deal on post-Brexit trade rules between the UK and Northern Ireland, which led the DUP to collapse Stormont for two years.
The replacement deal – under which the North continues to follow some EU laws on goods – gives Assembly members a voice on the implementation of new or amended EU goods rules.
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Under the protocol, Stormont politicians had no influence.
The democratic consent vote is about the continued application of Articles 5-10 of the Windsor Framework, which essentially govern the movement of goods on the island.
Article 9 enables the North to continue to have electricity supplied from and sold to the Republic.
Queen’s researchers found that 57 per cent of respondents were in favour of the continued application of the provisions.
Support for “democratic consent” was highest among those who identify as “strongly nationalist” (92 per cent), “slightly nationalist” (87 per cent) or “neutral” (84 per cent), while opposition was highest among respondents who identify as “strongly unionist” (90 per cent).
Lead study investigator, Prof David Phinnemore, from the school of politics at Queen’s, said that while the poll showed majority support for MLAs voting in favour of democratic consent, it failed to mask the fact that hardline unionists remain “implacably opposed” to the post-Brexit deal.
A “notable decline” in recent media coverage of the framework agreement was also referenced by co-investigator, Prof Katy Hayword of Queen’s University’s School of Social Sciences, Education and Social Work.
Despite the dip, the study showed that Northern voters continued to have “strong opinions” about the topic.
“Indeed, after a slight softening of differences, the line of division between them appears to be at risk of growing again. That three-quarters of respondents to our poll want to see more joint UK-EU presentation of factual information on the subject is surely a sign that people would prefer views to be shaped by facts rather than political positions or identities,” Prof Hayword added.
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