FF study finds fear UK will quit NI

Fear of financial consequences for the Republic if Britain disengages from Northern Ireland could be used by those campaigning for a No vote on the Belfast Agreement, a study commissioned by Fianna Fail has warned.

The survey, carried out independently on the basis of discussion groups, found a "strong belief among participants that Britain is anxious to extract itself from Northern Ireland, and there is a considerable fear of the financial consequences of this for people living in the Republic".

However, it also found that "there is a general sense that the politicians have done a very good job in getting matters to this point". The SDLP leader, Mr John Hume, is given the most credit for the process, while the leaders of Sinn Fein and the loyalist fringe parties are also praised.

"Attitudes to David Trimble are more ambivalent," the study adds. "There is some feeling that he has been forced (by Tony Blair, under a threat of virtual withdrawal) to accept something that he would not otherwise have done."

The general mood is a hope that the referendum will produce a positive and clear-cut result, the report continues. But it warns that "one of the dangers seems to be that because people are so disinclined to think about the situation in Northern Ireland (because it is so painful), they may not turn up in sufficient numbers".

The authors conclude: "There is a strong recognition that we have all, at some stage, been driven to the depths of despair by events in Northern Ireland. We have all asked ourselves: Why can't somebody do something about it? "The idea that we now have that opportunity, and will regret it later if we let it slip past, is perhaps the most compelling reason to get out and vote Yes."

As the campaign enters its final fortnight, leaders of all the parliamentary parties will share a platform in Dublin next week to appeal for a Yes vote on the Belfast Agreement.