Letter: To secure the Union unionists need to persuade others that they’re better off in the UK

They seem to believe that the future of the Windsor Agreement lies solely with the DUP - that their refusal to take their seats in Stormont is blocking the imposition of the detested ‘Irish Sea Border’. The reality is that the implementation of the ‘protocol’ trade arrangements is proceeding, and will continue to do so regardless of whatever the DUP decide.

Those unionists urging the DUP to continue the struggle should consider this. Following the 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement, tens of thousands took to the streets of Belfast, we had ‘Ulster Says No’, yet the Anglo-Irish Agreement remained in place until the signing of the Good Friday Agreement years later. Unionism failed to remove it.

Unionists need to wake up to the new reality - the union with Great Britain won’t be secured by the Act of Union any more than it prevented the creation of the Irish Free State a century ago. Had Scotland voted for independence by a single vote the Scottish Act of Union wouldn’t have prevented Scottish independence.

To secure the Union unionists will need to be able to persuade a majority of their fellow citizens that they’re better off in the UK, better off with the status quo, that remaining in the UK means better healthcare provision, better roads, better schools and better employment prospects for our young and a better life. Everything else is a distraction.

Alex Swan, Drumbo