The Solution that no one will like, at first.

The Northern Ireland situation is intractable.

Yes, of course Nationalists see the future as a United Ireland, as that will be the end of it, but what if that is wishful thinking? Unionists will come round, they will have to accept it, they will have seats in the Dail, the Irish will introduce an NHS, it will all be milk and honey. And I see on Twitter the total belief that the Irish want the North, that they will change everything including their health system to accommodate less than 20% of the population. I have a suspicion that the emotional desire for a United Ireland in the south may be getting subsumed in that new modern diverse country. They may look at their referenda results and realise that they may not have passed with a lot of Northern Presbyterians voting.

The Unionists win a border poll, and that kicks the can down the road for another ten years. More of the same, sectarian politics, division, distrust, and prosperity put on the back burner of identity.

But let’s think outside the boxes of Unionism and Nationalism. Take a moment and forget your history and upbringing, and really consider the reality of your lives.

Northern Ireland or the North or the 6 Counties is a place. It is land, it is geography, but it is also a concept. All those titles show that there is a difference. We are not in GB, we are not in Ireland, we are different. We may not want to be, and many don’t. They want to be Irish or British, to belong to somewhere else, other than where we are.

And we are the same. Everyone brought up in this part of the world has a shared history that is unique. It is brutal, filled with sectarian and political violence, but it is ours. We know about people and places that the Irish and British haven’t a clue about because we have had a land and sea border in our heads for ever. We know people that have suffered. We know why people here think the way they do, and act like no one else anywhere. We have a craic of our own, a darkness to our humour, a lightness to our welcome for others.

And yet we are fighting over our mindsets that were set by our ancestors in times when religious differences were core, when Catholic and Protestant meant that everyone went to a church every Sunday and more. When pulpits were used to promote politics more that Christianity. And yet now when more and more people give up on organised religion, we still use it to differentiate and divide.

Here’s an idea.

Joint Sovereignty.

An agreement that Ireland and GB take joint responsibility for the future of NI.

What? No way! I hear all sides shouting. And that is a good start.

So what is in it for Unionists?

They can remain in the UK and keep the NHS. They can call themselves British for all time, with no threat to their identity. They can be comfortable with their neighbours in Ireland wanting NI to succeed. They can keep a local parliament, to govern local affairs. The Protocol can work to attract massive investment that can be injected into education, health, and prosperity of wealth and culture. The threat of a border poll is taken away.

What is their downside?

That NI is a shared space, and that means that the symbolism, language, and respect are part of the new NI. It is not a downside.

What about Nationalists?

Nationalism is on the up. The winning of a border poll is taken as given. But that may be hope over reality. What happens if the vote goes the union’s way, with people being pragmatic about health and education, about taxes and incomes, about jobs and prosperity.

Or a border poll is won. Ireland is United, and suddenly the only politically important people in the North are the Unionists, who have seats in government in the Dail as a result of their block vote. Meanwhile the Northern Nationalist disappears, and becomes Irish, the same as those in Limerick, Cork, Galway and Donegal. With no special attention, watching as the Unionists are feted by one party or the other to create a coalition in Dublin. And the identity that has been desired for so long turns out to be a poisoned chalice.

Could it be that for Nationalists joint sovereignty is a better solution? Full citizenship of Ireland while retaining the hard-won power in the North. Retaining a democratic control over the part of this island that they inhabit? All while keeping the physical benefits of the NHS? It would be a bold move to shift from the lifelong desire for unification, but is it worth considering.

Being Northern Irish, not Irish or British, is something we can share. Own. Being the economic gateway in both directions. Having an independence that is underpinned by neither “side” having an upper hand. Looking to Ireland and GB, and Europe and the US as partners in this new venture. Enjoying learning our history to be enlightened, not to weaponize it to justify the past. Having our own unity, of identity, and purpose.

Unionism is almost by definition backwards looking, as the future is frightening, but if the constitutional issue was finally put to bed, there could be a sense of relief, of freedom to work alongside the rest of the Northern Irish. The Nationalists and Unionists working together for the benefit of the people in this part of the world.

Prosperity. Not money, but life. Being open to our strengths, innovation, dynamism. Putting away the political chains that are hung around our neck from childhood. Being a team, with different skillsets, working for the win.

Pie in the sky?

Maybe. Maybe not, but is should not be drowned by thinking that is 100 years old.