Editorial: Irish nationalism's new found concern about the sanctity of the 1998 Belfast Agreement rings hollow

​Nationalists and Alliance are in no position to pontificate about the sanctity of the Belfast Agreement – given they were only too happy to cheer along as it was swept aside to override unionist concerns about the Irish Sea border.

​Nigel Farage’s assertion this week that he would renegotiate the 1998 deal to remove obligations to keep Northern Ireland in line with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) prompted a furious reaction from nationalism.

You would be forgiven for thinking – given the Sinn Fein, SDLP and Alliance response – that they believe the text to be sacrosanct and set in stone.

Yet when it came to the imposition – over the heads of every elected unionist at Stormont – of a trade border with the rest of our country they had little concern about trashing the cross-community principles underpinning it.

Lord Trimble, one of the architects of the 1998 deal, said the Protocol “clearly rips the Good Friday Agreement apart”.

However, nationalists need not worry too much about the likelihood of Mr Farage seeking any changes to the deal. He has made it clear that NI would not necessarily leave the ECHR at the same time as the rest of the UK – and that the province is not at the “forefront” of his plans.

The speed at which the Reform UK leader capitulated to the idea that NI is a special case and a place apart shows his instincts differ little from successive UK governments.

However, he should realise that this part of the UK has been used – both by Brussels and elements of the UK establishment – to keep the entire country tied closely to Europe.

If he cannot stand up to nationalism and the Irish government, he stands no chance against an establishment at home eager to thwart his plans.