The conservative stewardship of Northern Ireland, 1979-97: Sound-bottomed contradictions or slow learning?

Political Studies

Volumn 45, Issue 4, 1997, Pages 663-676

  O'Leary, Brendan ^a  

^a NONE

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 0031231868     PISSN: 00323217     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/1467-9248.00103     Document Type: Article

References (50)

1. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
2. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
3. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
4. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
5. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
6. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
7. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
8. Spatial constraints prevent concessions to those unfamiliar with Northern Ireland. The necessary materials are in the following books and surveys: Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: a Positive Proposal (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1984); Kevin Boyle and Tom Hadden, Northern Ireland: the Choice (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images (Oxford, Cambridge, MA, Basil Blackwell, 1995); John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (eds), The Future of Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990); Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry (eds), 'A state of truce: Northern Ireland after twenty five years of war', Ethnic and Racial Studies 18 (1995), 4; Brendan O'Leary and John McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism: Understanding Northern Ireland (London and Atlantic Heights NJ, Athlone, 2nd ed., 1996); Joseph Ruane and Jennifer Todd, The Dynamics of Conflict in Northern Ireland: Power, Conflict and Emancipation (Cambridge, University of Cambridge Press, 1996); and John Whyte, Interpreting Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990).
9. For detailed treatments of these years see Paul Bew and Henry Patterson, The British State and the Ulster Crisis (London, Verso, 1985); Peter Catterall and Sean McDougall (eds), The Northern Ireland Question in British Politics (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1996); Michael Cunningham, British Government Policy in Northern Ireland 1969-89 (Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1991); Brendan O'Duffy, Violent Politics: a Theoretical and Empirical Examination of Two Centuries of Political Violence in Ireland (PhD dissertation, London School of Economics, 1996); and McGarry and O'Leary, The Politics of Antagonism.
10. For detailed treatments of these years see Paul Bew and Henry Patterson, The British State and the Ulster Crisis (London, Verso, 1985); Peter Catterall and Sean McDougall (eds), The Northern Ireland Question in British Politics (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1996); Michael Cunningham, British Government Policy in Northern Ireland 1969-89 (Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1991); Brendan O'Duffy, Violent Politics: a Theoretical and Empirical Examination of Two Centuries of Political Violence in Ireland (PhD dissertation, London School of Economics, 1996); and McGarry and O'Leary, The Politics of Antagonism.
11. For detailed treatments of these years see Paul Bew and Henry Patterson, The British State and the Ulster Crisis (London, Verso, 1985); Peter Catterall and Sean McDougall (eds), The Northern Ireland Question in British Politics (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1996); Michael Cunningham, British Government Policy in Northern Ireland 1969-89 (Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1991); Brendan O'Duffy, Violent Politics: a Theoretical and Empirical Examination of Two Centuries of Political Violence in Ireland (PhD dissertation, London School of Economics, 1996); and McGarry and O'Leary, The Politics of Antagonism.
12. For detailed treatments of these years see Paul Bew and Henry Patterson, The British State and the Ulster Crisis (London, Verso, 1985); Peter Catterall and Sean McDougall (eds), The Northern Ireland Question in British Politics (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1996); Michael Cunningham, British Government Policy in Northern Ireland 1969-89 (Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1991); Brendan O'Duffy, Violent Politics: a Theoretical and Empirical Examination of Two Centuries of Political Violence in Ireland (PhD dissertation, London School of Economics, 1996); and McGarry and O'Leary, The Politics of Antagonism.
13. For detailed treatments of these years see Paul Bew and Henry Patterson, The British State and the Ulster Crisis (London, Verso, 1985); Peter Catterall and Sean McDougall (eds), The Northern Ireland Question in British Politics (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1996); Michael Cunningham, British Government Policy in Northern Ireland 1969-89 (Manchester, Manchester University Press, 1991); Brendan O'Duffy, Violent Politics: a Theoretical and Empirical Examination of Two Centuries of Political Violence in Ireland (PhD dissertation, London School of Economics, 1996); and McGarry and O'Leary, The Politics of Antagonism.
14. After 1921 the number of Westminster seats for Northern Ireland was kept lower than its population might otherwise have warranted. In horse-trading with the UUP, to prolong the Labour Government, James Callaghan and Michael Foot agreed to increase Northern Irish representation at Westminster to 17 seats. The measure took effect in the 1983 general election, and increased the potential leverage of the UUP. From 1997 the region will have 18 seats.
15. Interview with the author, 3 January 1991.
16. For accounts which diverge on facts and opinions see James Prior, A Balance of Power (London, Hamish Hamilton, 1986) and Margaret Thatcher, The Downing Street Years (London, HarperCollins, 1995), esp. p. 394.
17. For accounts which diverge on facts and opinions see James Prior, A Balance of Power (London, Hamish Hamilton, 1986) and Margaret Thatcher, The Downing Street Years (London, HarperCollins, 1995), esp. p. 394.
18. Cornelius O'Leary, Sidney Elliott and Rick Wilford, The Northern Ireland Assembly, 1982-86: a Constitutional Experiment (London, Hurst, 1988).
19. See Geoffrey Evans and Brendan O'Leary, 'Intransigence and flexibility on the way to two forums: the Northern Ireland elections of May 30 1996 and public opinion', Representation, (1997 in press).
20. Locals devised nick-names for all the Tory Secretaries of State - the printable ones include Willie Whitewash, Humphrey Who?, Gentleman Jim, Tom Cat King, Babbling Brooke and Paddy Mayhem.
21. These 'de-democratizing' measures were often welcomed by Catholics and nationalists in the SDLP - who preferred progressive and professionalized public administration under direct rule to clientelist and discriminatory local government by the UUP.
22. Author's unattributable interview with a senior Conservative MP in 1990.
23. For different discussions of the meanings, making and impact of the Anglo-Irish Agreement see Arthur Aughey, Under Siege: Ulster Unionism and the Anglo-Irish Agreement (London, Hurst, 1989); Tom Hadden and Kevin Boyle (eds), The Anglo-Irish Agrement (London, Sweet and Maxwell, 1989);
24. For different discussions of the meanings, making and impact of the Anglo-Irish Agreement see Arthur Aughey, Under Siege: Ulster Unionism and the Anglo-Irish Agreement (London, Hurst, 1989); Tom Hadden and Kevin Boyle (eds), The Anglo-Irish Agrement (London, Sweet and Maxwell, 1989);
25. Anthony Kenny, The Road to Hillsborough (Oxford, Pergamon, 1986); and O'Leary and McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism, chs 6-7.
26. Anthony Kenny, The Road to Hillsborough (Oxford, Pergamon, 1986); and O'Leary and McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism, chs 6-7.
27. Lord Tebbitt described the Irish government as 'a county council' to the author, who pointed out that Conservative governments are not in the habit of signing treaties with county councils -BSkyB, London, 13 February 1996.
28. See O'Leary and McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism, chs 6-7.
29. This strategy, backed by some senior civil servants, was called 'coercive consociation' by this author, not by the policy makers (as some unionists imagine the author to have claimed) - see O'Leary, 'The limits to coercive consociationalism in Northern Ireland', Political Studies 37 (1989), 452-68. The strategy aimed to push unionists into a devolved power-sharing government by confronting them with the threat that British-Irish intergovernmental cooperation might lead to something worse. Critics of this interpretation are commended to re-read the text of the Agreement: Article 4 states that agreed devolved government is the preferred policy of the UK, and that the Irish government supports the policy; Articles 2 and 4 limit the scope of the Inter-Governmental Conference if there is a devolved government.
30. Thatcher, The Downing Street Years, pp. 406-7.
31. Thatcher, The Downing Street Years, p. 407.
32. Kevin Bean, 'The New Departure: Recent Developments in Irish Republican Ideology and Strategy', Occasional Papers in Irish Studies, No. 6 (University of Liverpool, Institute of Irish Studies, 1994); Eamonn Mallie and David McKittrick, The Fight for Peace: the Secret Story Behind the Irish Peace Process (London, Heinemann, 1996); Fionnula O'Connor, In Search of a State: the Catholics of Northern Ireland (Belfast, Blackstaff, 1993), and the author's interviews, suggest that the Agreement compelled a rethink amongst republicans, first visible in Sinn Féin's Scenario for Peace (1987), and consolidated with the publication of Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland (1992).
33. Kevin Bean, 'The New Departure: Recent Developments in Irish Republican Ideology and Strategy', Occasional Papers in Irish Studies, No. 6 (University of Liverpool, Institute of Irish Studies, 1994); Eamonn Mallie and David McKittrick, The Fight for Peace: the Secret Story Behind the Irish Peace Process (London, Heinemann, 1996); Fionnula O'Connor, In Search of a State: the Catholics of Northern Ireland (Belfast, Blackstaff, 1993), and the author's interviews, suggest that the Agreement compelled a rethink amongst republicans, first visible in Sinn Féin's Scenario for Peace (1987), and consolidated with the publication of Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland (1992).
34. Kevin Bean, 'The New Departure: Recent Developments in Irish Republican Ideology and Strategy', Occasional Papers in Irish Studies, No. 6 (University of Liverpool, Institute of Irish Studies, 1994); Eamonn Mallie and David McKittrick, The Fight for Peace: the Secret Story Behind the Irish Peace Process (London, Heinemann, 1996); Fionnula O'Connor, In Search of a State: the Catholics of Northern Ireland (Belfast, Blackstaff, 1993), and the author's interviews, suggest that the Agreement compelled a rethink amongst republicans, first visible in Sinn Féin's Scenario for Peace (1987), and consolidated with the publication of Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland (1992).
35. Kevin Bean, 'The New Departure: Recent Developments in Irish Republican Ideology and Strategy', Occasional Papers in Irish Studies, No. 6 (University of Liverpool, Institute of Irish Studies, 1994); Eamonn Mallie and David McKittrick, The Fight for Peace: the Secret Story Behind the Irish Peace Process (London, Heinemann, 1996); Fionnula O'Connor, In Search of a State: the Catholics of Northern Ireland (Belfast, Blackstaff, 1993), and the author's interviews, suggest that the Agreement compelled a rethink amongst republicans, first visible in Sinn Féin's Scenario for Peace (1987), and consolidated with the publication of Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland (1992).
36. Kevin Bean, 'The New Departure: Recent Developments in Irish Republican Ideology and Strategy', Occasional Papers in Irish Studies, No. 6 (University of Liverpool, Institute of Irish Studies, 1994); Eamonn Mallie and David McKittrick, The Fight for Peace: the Secret Story Behind the Irish Peace Process (London, Heinemann, 1996); Fionnula O'Connor, In Search of a State: the Catholics of Northern Ireland (Belfast, Blackstaff, 1993), and the author's interviews, suggest that the Agreement compelled a rethink amongst republicans, first visible in Sinn Féin's Scenario for Peace (1987), and consolidated with the publication of Towards a Lasting Peace in Ireland (1992).
37. See McGarry and O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland, Appendices A and B.
38. See W. Harvey Cox, 'Managing Northern Ireland intergovernmentally', Parliamentary Affairs, 40 (1987), 80-97.
39. For the possibilities see Brendan O'Leary, 'Afterword: what is framed in the framework documents?', Ethnic and Racial Studies, 18 (1995), 862-72; and McGarry and O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland, ch. 10.
40. For the possibilities see Brendan O'Leary, 'Afterword: what is framed in the framework documents?', Ethnic and Racial Studies, 18 (1995), 862-72; and McGarry and O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland, ch. 10.
41. Conservative Central Office, You Can Only Be Sure with the Conservatives: The Conservative Manifesto 1997 (Westminster, 1997), p. 51.
42. McGarry and O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland, pp. 409, 420.
43. See Christopher McCrudden, 'The Evolution of Fair Employment (Northern Ireland) Act 1989 in Parliament', in R. J. Cormac and R. D. Osborne (eds), Discrimination and Public Policy in Northern Ireland (Oxford, Clarendon, 1990), pp. 244-64.
44. Eunan O'Halpin, The Decline of the Union: British Government in Ireland, 1892-1920 (Dublin, Gill and Macmillan, 1987).
45. Ian Lustick, Unsettled States, Disputed Lands: Britain and Ireland, France and Algeria and the West-Bank-Gaza (New York, Cornell University Press, 1993); O'Leary and McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism ch. 2.
46. Ian Lustick, Unsettled States, Disputed Lands: Britain and Ireland, France and Algeria and the West-Bank-Gaza (New York, Cornell University Press, 1993); O'Leary and McGarry, The Politics of Antagonism ch. 2.
47. Michael Laffan, The Partition of Ireland, 1911-25 (Dundalk, Dundalgan, 1983).
48. McGarry and O'Leary, Explaining Northern Ireland, ch. 1.
49. David McKittrick, 'FitzGerald attacks inept Britain', The Independent (London, 7 June 1989).
50. New Ireland Forum, Report (Dublin, Stationery Office, 1984).