It is reasonable to expect London to recognise Northern Ireland's Remain vote

In response to Jeffrey Dudgeon's somewhat rambling letter (July 8) in relation to the recent Belfast City Council meeting discussing the EU referendum, I'm not quite sure what point Councillor Dudgeon is attempting to make.

While Alliance was disappointed by the result, as democrats we respect the decision.

However, we also realise the majority of people in Northern Ireland voted Remain.

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The motion called upon the Assembly to engage with the governments of these islands by taking on board those democratic wishes of the majority of people here.

Councillor Dudgeon correctly points out the EU is composed of sovereign states. However, the UK also has differing regional governance settlements, which provide the basis for our regional relationships within the EU, especially the special circumstances of Northern Ireland.

Therefore, there can be no reason that negotiations cannot recognise that.

The real issue here is Councillor Dudgeon’s hatred of the Alliance Party and his attempts to continually case anything the party does in a bad light.

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Despite the UUP leader Mike Nesbitt attempting to cast himself as the leader of the Remain camp here, his councillors in Belfast all voted against the motion.

So once again it is clear the UUP are in disarray and we are seeing splits throughout the party – the City Hall group are doing their own thing once more.

I would ask Councillor Dudgeon to put aside his irrational dislike of Alliance and come on board with those from all walks of life and all political viewpoints, who are attempting to get the best deal possible for Northern Ireland in any future negotiations.

Michael Long, Alliance Councillor, Belfast