Northern Ireland: border polls

The term ‘border poll’ refers to a referendum on whether Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom or join with the Republic of Ireland to form a united Ireland.

When have border polls been held?

To date only one border poll has been held in Northern Ireland, in 1973. In that poll a majority of voters elected to remain part of the United Kingdom, though the vote was widely boycotted by supporters of Irish unification.

The UK Government had planned to institute regular border polls in Northern Ireland but, in light of the controversy surrounding the 1973 poll, no further polls were held over the next 25 years.

What is the process for holding a border poll?

The current legal framework for holding a border poll was set out in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in 1998 and incorporated into UK law through the Northern Ireland Act 1998. In the agreement, the UK and Irish governments affirmed the ‘principle of consent’ under which the constitutional status of Northern Ireland cannot change without the agreement of the people of Northern Ireland.

Under the 1998 act, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland can decide to hold a border poll at any time, provided that there has not been another border poll in the last seven years. The act also imposes a duty on the Secretary of State to hold a border poll if it appears likely that a majority of people in Northern Ireland would vote for Irish unification.

However, in order to create a united Ireland, unification must have the support of the people of both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement provides that a majority of voters must be in favour of a unified Ireland in both jurisdictions to effect constitutional change.

What questions remain around border polls?

The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement left several issues relating to border polls unclear.

For example, there is no detail in the agreement on how the Secretary of State should judge whether there is majority support in Northern Ireland for Irish unification. Courts have since held that there is no requirement on the Secretary of State to publish a policy setting out what evidence would be used to judge support for Irish unification.

There is also debate as to what form a border poll should take: for example, what the referendum question should be and whether the poll should be held on the general principle of unification or after specific proposals have been set out for how a united Ireland would be governed.

Unanswered questions on the governance of a united Ireland include the constitution of the new state, the transfer of responsibility for public services in Northern Ireland and the new state’s maritime borders with the UK.