A Republican mural in Belfast.
As a remain supporter, though like many in the Green Party not uncritical of the EU (the TTIP of the iceberg being its neoliberalism and support for corporate-led globalisation), this week has gone from cautious optimism that the UK would vote remain, coupled with the joy of both NI and the Republic of Ireland teams making it to last 16 of the European football championship, to the grim reality of the ‘day after’. Although NI voted to stay in (as did Scotland), the UK as whole voted to leave, leaving many to comment that this was not the UK but England (and to a lesser extent Wales) voting to leave the EU.
Some of the immediate reactions here have ranged from the predictable to the personal. In the former case, we see the DUP’s leader and First Minister, Arlene Foster, the only main party to back Brexit, refusing to ‘do a Cameron’ and resign since a majority of NI backed remain. In the latter I would include not just the strained personal-political relations between individuals in both camps – in my own case trade union and left wing activists here in NI who supported Lexit – relations that should be repaired quickly for the fight against the Tory right ahead. I would also include the fact that in my hometown of Holywood, a mixed but predominately Protestant-Unionist area just outside Belfast, the local post office this morning (the day after the vote) handed out over 200 Irish passport applications. This would tally with the Dublin passport office hiring hundreds of extra staff in anticipation of this increase in inquires about and applications for Irish passports. According to the Irish Times:
