Just like the old days, unionist politicians are still failing to serve interests of Protestant working class

WILLIE Methven (Write Back, August 27) made some salient and significant points about the predicament of the Protestant working class under the unionist regime. It is arguably acknowledged now that the unionist government deployed a ‘divide-and-conquer’ strategy in order to diminish the solidarity and strength of the working class voice here.

The Catholic working class were scapegoated as a contributing cause of the appalling social and housing conditions that existed in the north. As advocated by the likes of Rev Ian Paisley, Catholics were unambiguously demonised and stigmatised; they were vermin who bred like rabbits, they were lazy, work-shy and bled the financial resources of the state.

As such, they bore a responsibility for the poor level of social and housing provision — not an administration that was incompetent, neglectful and corrupt.

The outcome was to dupe Protestants into adopting a culture that held Catholics responsible, placating them with the belief that they were ‘kings of the poorhouse’ and creating a diversionary tactic that sidelined the blame away from its actual source — the Stormont government.

It was only when the escalating conflict received international attention that visiting foreign (and many English) journalists discovered there were dreadful social and housing conditions, blinding poverty and corrupt voting systems existing throughout both communities — on a level significantly worse than their counterparts across the water.

Later, it was the emergence of grassroots politicians like David Ervine who spoke out bravely in support of working class Protestants and questioned the ambivalence of a regime that thrived and prospered from their loyalty, yet treated them with such indifference and neglect.

Willie Methven summed this up by describing as ‘delusional’ the belief among many Protestants that unionist politicians had served their interests effectively. Unfortunately, that would seem to continue to be the case.

GERRY DEVLIN Belfast