THE TORY government's attempt to impose a political 'solution' on the north of Ireland has ended in failure.
Margaret Thatcher admitted much during the Queen's Speech in the Commons, last Thursday.
Said Thatcher: 'The hoped to bring forward legislation on Northern Ireland.
*For many months the government had been seeking agreement in the province to bring forward proposals for transfer of responsibility to elected representatives there. forthcoming.
Behind these carefully chosen words lies the collapse of the strategy for the north of Ireland.
It was in Secretary OI State for Northern Humphrey Atkins, first announced in parliament that at 'an early date' he would put forward 'proposals for transferring to locallyweeks ago, Eilish Green was just an ordinary working class woman the town of Lurgan in County Antrim.
In most ways she is still unexceptional community in the north of Ireland. She is 'difin only one respect her brother is slowly starying to death.
as debate on the House of government had substantial achieved.
That agreement has not been Tories' whole political Party.
October 1979 that the Tory the talks.
further elected representatives some of the powers of government in Northern Ireland at present exercised from Westminster' The following month the government produced 'a working paper', outlining a number of ways such a 'transfer' of powers could be A series of discussions were then held with Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionist Party, the and the 'moderate' The Ulster Unionist Party boycotted Six months later, in July this year, the outcome of these discussions was detailed in a government Government of Northern Ireland: Proposals discuss the first Democratic discuss the second and The Alliance "The needs'.
Javel. for Further Discussion'.
This put forward two options: either a local government run on the basis of 'powersharing' between Loyalist and non-Loyalist parties; or simple majority, that is Loyalist rule. Inevitably the Unionist parties refused to option, while the and Labour Party refused to resulting statement was acknowledged by Thatcher last week. All she had to offer in the way of future policies was the statement the government was considerIng onel ways or making tne administratol of the province more responsible to local This could mean two things: either the forpower to local councils.
The collapse Thatcher.
premier Charlie re-unification finally streets OI the north sultative powers only, or the transfer of more But already the Social Democratic and Labour Party has said it would not co-operate in either of these solutions. In the event of the tormation of a consultative assembly, SDLP has gone as far as to say it would boycott the elections to such a body.
Tories' 'solution' comes at a particularly embarrassing time for In two weeks she is due to meet Irish Haughey, who pressure from his own Fianna Fail party to wing some concessions trom 1 natcher in tne direction of British support for eventual Irish But the strongest pressure Thatcher will face in the weeks ahead will come from the of treland. Tens of thousands have taken to those streets in support of the H Block hunger strikers.
Many more will join them as the hunger strikers grow weaker and weaker. Around Xmas, Britain could find that its last outpost in Ireland has become unmanageable.