Unlikely FG hero for North’s nationalists
IT is a somewhat unusual spectacle to witness a Fine Gael taoiseach as the champion of Northern nationalists. Yet there is no question that the recent deal secured by Leo Varadkar over the border in the context of the Brexit negotiations was an enormous victory in this regard. That such a move proved phenomenally popular with the electorate here is also beyond doubt.
There is now a sense, indeed, after all the centuries when the power rested with the bigger entity in this relationship, that the tables have turned.
At a time when we have the unqualified backing of Europe while, at the same time, our British neighbour needs to do deals with them, there is a clear sense that this is a particularly good time to press home our advantage.
That old World War I dictum – ‘England’s difficulty is Ireland’s opportunity’ – has been given, it seems, something of a 21stcentury twist.
That the Taoiseach is committed, in the context of the political vacuum in the North, to re-establishing the British-Irish government arm as enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement in that jurisdiction is an unambiguous stance. It will infuriate the DUP and will, in all likelihood, be viewed in Westminster as confirmation of a concern that there are moves at play to push for a united Ireland by stealth.
Nonetheless, confronting Britain in such a muscular fashion has undoubtedly proved enormously popular on home turf. Carrying on in that vein can only cement the notion that we have, at the head of Government, a Fine Gael Taoiseach who has resolved not to leave Northern nationalists behind.
Whatever comes out of this, however the long game pans out, one thing is certain – Leo Varadkar has enhanced his position in the eyes of the electorate.
If the Stormont Assembly is reconstituted, he gets the credit. If the stalemate continues and a political row arises on the back of the British-Irish body, the Irish people will flock to his cause.
As it stands, therefore, it’s a win-win situation for the Taoiseach.