Social Attitudes in Northern Ireland

The 7th Report 1997-1998

Gillian Robinson, Deirdre Heenan, Kate Thompson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2019
• Print ISBN: 9781138345010
• eBook ISBN: 9780429796128
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Political Parties
• Index: Politics & International Relations

First published in 1998, this seventh volume of Social Attitudes in Northern Ireland reports the main findings of the Northern Ireland Social Attitudes survey carried out in 1996. In this survey, views were obtained on community relations in Northern Ireland; the growth of home ownership; attitudes to the countryside; the role of government in Northern Ireland; attitudes to the National Health Service; attitudes to the environment and belief and trust in the political process. The various chapters provide a measure of the feelings, attitudes and beliefs of the people of Northern Ireland on a wide range of matters. Many of the chapters chart trends from the early 1990s and analyse changes in attitudes over the period.

1 Community Relations in Northern Ireland: Attitudes to Contact and Integration

JOANNE HUGHES AND PAUL CARMICHAEL

Introduction

The last ten years have seen a concerted effort on the part of successive UK governments to address the seemingly intractable problems of community relations in Northern Ireland. The approach has been twofold with attempts to find a constitutional resolution to the conflict complemented by the development of a community relations infrastructure. In the light of these developments, this chapter provides a résumé of the macro-political context over the period. It outlines the nature of community relations chiefly in terms of policy, legislative and infrastructural developments before offering an assessment of community relations in Northern Ireland. It goes on to consider evidence from the Northern Ireland Social Attitudes surveys conducted in 1989 and 1996. The central message is that the data indicate a discernible shift towards greater tolerance and mutual understanding.

Macro-political Developments

From 1987, a sustained twin-track approach to resolving Northern Ireland’s constitutional imbroglio emerged. At the political level, the focus has been on attaining a constitutional settlement which will accommodate both unionists and nationalists. Complementing this, organisations with a dedicated community relations remit have been established and, through them, resources targeted at local community level. Arguably, it was the Enniskillen bomb on Remembrance Sunday in 1987 which prompted many in both communities to reconsider the future of Northern Ireland. In local government, for example, the incident was instrumental in promoting the development of ‘responsibility sharing’ in councils (Knox, 1996). This move was consolidated by government measures to encourage inter-community cooperation at the local authority level. Equally important were various European Community initiatives, notably, the European Community Peace and Reconciliation Programme (1995) which is designed explicitly to foster partnership and community-based forms of decision-making and service delivery.

Concurrent with these developments was the litany of the troubles. Though their intensity was at its lowest since during 1970-71, the relative decline in violence was shortlived. By 1989, an upsurge in loyalist violence triggered a familiar cycle of tit-for-tat reprisals by republican paramilitaries. By the early 1990s, these attacks were increasing in frequency culminating in the Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) Shankill Road bombing of September 1993. The immediate outlook was bleak.

It was at this juncture that, in December 1993, the Downing Street Declaration between the British and Irish Governments marked a turning point. Whilst not the beginning of the end of the troubles, it appeared to be the end of the beginning, to coin a phrase. Hence, although the next eight months would witness further atrocities and outrages perpetrated by terrorists on both sides, by August 1994, the PIRA had declared a ceasefire, to be followed by the Combined Loyalist Military Command in October 1994. From thereafter, whilst the climate remained tense, the groundswell of goodwill and resolve to ‘make peace work’ was almost palpable. Notwithstanding genuine fears of a slide back into the worst excesses of the conflict, the period since 1994 was characterised by a widespread hope and expectation of improvement. Outwardly at least, a relaxed atmosphere descended on Northern Ireland as the immediate threat of violence receded.

Perhaps inevitably, the honeymoon period could not last. The summer of 1995 witnessed the first of three successive summers of discontent centred on a controversial march by members of the Portadown Lodge of the Orange Order from Drumcree parish church. However, ‘Drumcree 1’, as it was subsequently dubbed, did not of itself spell the end of the ceasefires. This came in February 1996, with the Irish Republican Army’s (IRA) Canary Wharf bombing in London. Even then, however, Northern Ireland was spared the resumption of fullscale terrorism and, at the time of the 1996 survey on which this report was prepared, confidence about the prospects for a speedy restitution of the ceasefires remained buoyant.

Community Relations in Northern Ireland

The outbreak of violence in 1969 which followed Catholic demands for civil rights forced the British Government at Westminster to play a more active role in the local politics of Northern Ireland¹. As an interim step, troops were sent in to quell riots which had erupted in interface areas. A series of more long term reforms followed. These were designed to address the inequities which were a consequence of unionist control in the regional government of Northern Ireland and to address nationalist concerns. Issues for particular consideration were the voting arrangements for local authorities; the procedures for addressing electoral boundaries and the allocation of housing -all of which had previously been used to strengthen the powerbase of unionists (Whyte, 1990). In addition, the government made a commitment to examine relationships between the two communities and underlying causes of violence.

The main infrastructural outcome was the establishment of the Community Relations Commission and a ministry to oversee its work. Modelled on similar lines to the UK Commission for Racial Equality which deals with race relations issues, membership was drawn equally from both communities. Primary functions of the commission included:

‘the encouragement of bodies active in promoting improved community relations, advice to government, the provision of educational and other programmes, and the commissioning or carrying out of research on community relations themes’. (Gallagher, 1995, p.29)

The initiative was not without its detractors. Hayes (1972) argued that locating governmental responsibility within a single, small ministry marginalised the issue. Community relations policy should inform government decisions at all levels where policy decisions impact upon both communities (housing, education, industry, law enforcement etc.). The strategy of ‘mainstreaming’ advocated by Hayes, whilst finding little support at the time, has become a feature of public policy in Northern Ireland during the 1990s as evidenced by Policy Appraisal and Fair Treatment (PAFT) guidelines (this is discussed in more detail later in the chapter).

By the mid-1970s the official community relations infrastructure had collapsed. Various explanations as to the cause of its demise have been advanced. At an official level, it was stated that the Power-Sharing Executive of 1974 (a joint system of government between Protestants and Catholics)² obviated the need for a Community Relations Commission. Some commentators, however, have suggested that this may have been a convenient excuse. The real reason lay in the fact that politicians were becoming increasingly suspicious of the community development strategy promoted by the Commission. Their concern was that a strengthened voluntary sector could provide an alternative basis for community leadership (Gallagher, 1995). Whatever the cause, community relations became a dormant issue for over a decade.

The sea change in the latter half of the 1980s which saw the return of community relations as a priority issue for policy-makers was prompted by several factors. These included the electoral rise of Sinn Féin after the hunger-strikes by Republican prisoners; external pressure to tackle community relations exerted on the British Government through the McBride campaign³; and, the Anglo-Irish Agreement (1985) which introduced a new dimension, in the form of consultation with the Government of the Irish Republic, to policy decisions on Northern Ireland. Of greatest significance, however, was a paper prepared for the Standing Advisory Commission on Human Rights (SACHR) by Hugh Fraser and Mari Fitzduff. It examined the history of community relations in Northern Ireland and considered ways in which difficult issues could be resolved (Gallagher, 1995). Developments in several areas ensued, namely, policy, legislation and infrastructure.

1 Policy

In 1992 government established an explicit community relations policy which had three primary aims: (a) to increase contact between Protestants and Catholics; (b) to encourage greater mutual understanding and respect for diverse cultural traditions; and, (c) to ensure that everyone in Northern Ireland enjoys equality of opportunity and equity of treatment (Department of Finance and Personnel and HM Treasury, 1992, p. 142). The PAFT guidelines relating to equality, equity and fair treatment were published in 1994. The preamble reads as follows:

‘Equality and equity are central issues which must condition and influence policy, taking in all spheres and at all levels of Government activity, whether in regulatory and administrative functions or through the delivery of services to the public’. (Northern Ireland Office, 1994)

Areas identified as relevant for PAFT proofing include: religion; gender; political opinion; marital status; having or not having a dependant; ethnicity; disability; age; and sexual orientation. Policy proposals when forwarded for ministerial decision must indicate that a PAFT appraisal has been undertaken. In addition, departments are required to monitor the impact of their policy on designated groups and to provide relevant training for public sector managers. Finally, all departments are required to submit an annual report to the Northern Ireland Civil Service Central Secretariat outlining action taken to implement the PAFT guidelines.

2 Legislation

There have been three key developments over the last ten years. These have been designed to address institutionalised segregation in education, discrimination in the workforce, and equality and equity concerns in the formulation of public policy. Specifically, with respect to education, the Department of Education for Northern Ireland (DENI) made provision for integrated education under the Education Reform Order (1989). In particular it became possible for existing segregated schools to opt for integrated status through a parental ballot. Recognising, however, that most schools would retain their segregated status, the Order also provided that two cross curricular themes would become mandatory in the teaching of most academic subjects, namely, ‘Education for Mutual Understanding’ (EMU) and ‘Cultural Heritage’. EMU aims, inter alia, to help children learn to ‘respect themselves and others’ and ‘to know about and understand what is shared as well as what is different about their cultural traditions’ (Northern Ireland Curriculum Council, 1990). Although cross-community contact is not viewed as compulsory to the achievement of these goals, it remains an optional strategy which teachers are encouraged to use. Measures to tackle discrimination in the workforce were threefold. In 1989, the Fair Employment (NI) Act was passed. This was followed in the same year by the establishment of a Fair Employment Commission and a Fair Employment Tribunal to deal with cases of alleged discrimination. Employers with more than 10 employees are required to register with the FEC and to monitor the religious composition of their workforce. It is illegal to discriminate indirectly and limited affirmative action policies to address imbalance in the religious composition of the workforce are permitted. The third area was PAFT, as outlined earlier.

3 Infrastructure

A community relations infrastructure was re-established. Central to this was the creation of the Central Community Relations Unit (CCRU) in 1987. Reporting directly to the head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS), CCRU was charged with formulating, reviewing and challenging policy throughout the government system with the aim of ‘bringing the two sides of the community towards greater understanding’ (CCRU, 1991). All government departments were required to critically assess their policies and procedures to ensure that community relations considerations informed the delivery of key services in areas such as health, education, housing and economic development. Other aspects of the CCRU remit require the Unit to develop new ideas which would improve community relations and to support on-going efforts aimed at prejudice reduction. Several initiatives followed which endeavoured to improve contact between the two communities. In September 1987, the Department of Education for Northern Ireland (DENI) released £250,000 for the establishment of a Cross Community Contact Scheme. Administered through DENI, the scheme targets young people under the age of 19 and provides new resources for those already working in the area of peace and reconciliation. Funding criteria stipulate that activities seeking assistance should:

‘... Improve cross-community understanding, be in addition to existing activity, be purposeful, and wherever possible, result in on-going contacts between young people from two communities’. (Northern Ireland Information Service, 1987, p.3)

The scale of applications and the subsequent involvement of more than one third of the schools in Northern Ireland prompted further developments. In February 1989, £2m was made available by government for the advancement of community relations objectives. Of this, £250,000 was used to extend the Cross Community Contact Scheme. The remainder contributed towards the establishment of two bodies. The first was the Cultural Traditions Group, headed by the controller of the BBC and charged with designing programmes in the arts, media and museums which would encourage constructive discussion on cultural traditions issues in Northern Ireland. Second, the Northern Ireland Community Relations Council (CRC) was formed in 1990 as a semi-autonomous government-funded public agency. CRC gained charitable status and served as a resource centre and focal point for groups and individuals working to improve community relations. Bloomfield (1997, p.65) remarked that CRC was, with hindsight, the major development of the era in community relations in Northern Irelan...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• The Contributors
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• List of Tables
• List of Figures
• Introduction
• 1 Community Relations in Northern Ireland: Attitudes to Contact and Integration
• 2 The Growth of Home Ownership: Explanations and Implications
• 3 Attitudes to the Countryside
• 4 Role of Government
• 5 Attitudes to the National Health Service in Northern Ireland
• 6 Attitudes to the Environment in Northern Ireland
• 7 Belief and Trust in the Political Process
• Appendix I: Technical Details of the Survey
• Appendix II: Notes on the Tabulations
• Appendix III: Using Northern Ireland Social Attitudes Survey Data
• Appendix IV: The Questionnaires