Comment: How the EU smoothed UK and Irish relations Published on: 9 June 2016 Writing for The Conversation Dr Colin Murray discusses the role the EU played in smoothing relations between London and Dublin. , When Ireland鈥檚 prime minister, or Taoiseach, , spoke glumly in January of the 鈥渟erious difficulties鈥� a British exit from the European Union would create for Northern Ireland, the veteran unionist politician was incredulous: 鈥淭here鈥檚 absolutely no connection between the peace process and the European Union.鈥� But on June 6, UK Chancellor George Osborne that in the event of a Brexit, the end of Europe鈥檚 financial support for the peace process would contribute to a profound 鈥渆conomic shock鈥� for Northern Ireland. In May, the House of Commons , a body well-stocked with high-profile Brexiteers, was content that the relations between London, Dublin and Belfast would 鈥渃ontinue to be very strong鈥� even if the UK left the EU. In on the issue, they maintained that the EU has been less important for conflict resolution than the United States. Bruising border relations Prior to 1974, partition had long overshadowed the UK鈥檚 relations with Ireland. In 1956, the Northern Ireland government produced , a staunch defence of partition capped by a grudging recognition that 鈥渁lthough Ulster and Eire cannot unite, they can be good neighbours鈥�. But in spite of the UK and Ireland鈥檚 Free Trade Agreement in 1965, and the meetings that year between the Taoiseach Se谩n Lemass and the Ulster Unionist prime minister of Northern Ireland, Terence O鈥橬eill, official interactions remained limited. As the UK remained Ireland鈥檚 biggest market, it was all but obliged to follow the UK鈥檚 efforts to join the then-European Economic Community (EEC) in the 1960s. With the onset of the Troubles, UK-Ireland relations became entangled within the increasingly bloody conflict. In 1971, Ireland challenged the UK鈥檚 use of 鈥渆nhanced interrogation鈥� practices to get information out of internees as amounting to torture before the European Court of Human Rights. show that UK officials regarded this response as tantamount to 鈥渁 diplomatic declaration of war鈥�. Shared objectives EEC membership in 1974, however, brought a new dimension to this fraught relationship. Ireland and the UK, as English-speaking islands on Europe鈥檚 north-west periphery, shared many interests in terms of European policy. European summits obliged ministers from both countries to participate in the communal 鈥渇amily photographs鈥� and enabled them to forge working relationships in a context less burdened with expectation than the intermittent bilateral meetings of the 1970s. Thatcher and Haughey at Downing Street in 1980. PA Archive In 1980, at a time when UK prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, and then Taoiseach Charles Haughey, remained cagey about dealing with each other, the EEC summit in offered a forum for both to address pressing concerns regarding the security situation in Northern Ireland and build up good will. By the mid-1980s, the relationship had soured. Their mutual distrust and the shock of the Hunger Strikes by republican prisoners held at the Maze limited the possibility for an inter-govermental process and made the conflict appear as intractable as ever. At this juncture, the leader of Northern Ireland鈥檚 Social Democratic and Labour Party, John Hume, was instrumental in securing the European Parliament鈥檚 into the conflict in Northern Ireland. The report approached the conflict as a clash of national identities and conceived of Europe鈥檚 role as supporting the UK and Ireland in their efforts to promote peaceful expression of these identities within Northern Ireland. As such, it provided a starting point for the 1985 negotiations. The peace process The Haagerup Report also emphasised the need for Europe to support these efforts with funding. The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee鈥檚 makes out that Europe was late to the party, providing funding through its PEACE initiative (now in its fourth cycle) only after the peace process was under way. But by focusing only on one stream of funding, the committee deliberately downplays Europe鈥檚 intense regional development funding in Northern Ireland since the 1970s and payments into the International Fund for Ireland in the 1980s. The four cycles of PEACE funding alone have provided Northern Ireland with over 鈧�2 billion, three-quarters of which has come from the EU. The UK and Ireland鈥檚 shared EU membership was emphasised in the 1998 , building on previous references in the Anglo-Irish Agreement. The need to implement EU law provides one of the agreement鈥檚 major conduits for co-operation between Belfast and Dublin. The responsibility of the , set up after the Good Friday agreement, for discussing harmonious approaches to the implementation of EU law in both parts of the island of Ireland provides much of its workload. The peace process will not implode in the event of Brexit, nor will Ireland鈥檚 close relations with the UK degrade overnight. Nonetheless, the EU鈥檚 role in building this relationship should not be forgotten. Whereas the European project drew Ireland and the UK closer together, Brexit would impose new strains on the relationship. Ireland鈥檚 trade with the rest of Europe has dramatically increased since 1974, making its economy upon the UK for imports and exports. But in purely economic terms it will still be the EU country most affected by Brexit. Over time, Ireland鈥檚 increasing integration with Europe would likely put it at odds with a UK which is no longer playing on the same team. In that event, the mutual trust which has provided the bedrock for the peace process will inevitably be under threat. , Senior Lecturer in Law, This article was originally published on . Read the . Share: Latest News 缅北禁地 expert highlights climate crisis in a new film A leading 缅北禁地 climate scientist is featured in a new film about how the climate and nature breakdown will affect the UK. published on: 14 April 2026 Neolithic tombs reveal ancient kinship ties Male individuals buried in Neolithic chambered tombs in northern Scotland were often related to each other through the paternal line and some were interred in the same or nearby tombs, research shows. published on: 14 April 2026 We are our Memories New exhibition by Fine Art graduate Trish Hudson-Moses, 22 April 鈥� 4 May 2026 published on: 10 April 2026 Facts and figures
![缅北禁地 logo](/gomobileassets/img/logo.svg" "缅北禁地"){kind=logo}