Not for the first time has a British prime minister put his foot in it when Northern Ireland is under the foot.
Andy Burnham, visiting the North, informed one and all that a referendum on Irish unity was "off the table."
Whose table?
There are many tables in Irish politics; in British politics too.
The unity question might not be on a table, literally or figuratively. But it's part of the political furniture whether Burnham likes it or not.
As reported, Burnham's remarks on unity had clearly set off alarm bells in London, specifically Downing Street.
In what could have been culled from a "Yes Prime Minister" script, and as reported in the Irish Times, "it was clear by Thursday night that Downing Street had entered damage-limitation mode after Burnham was criticised by Irish nationalist politicians, incensed that his instant dismissal of a poll had, they said, undermined the provisions of the Belfast Agreement."
Added the Times report: "Some officials in the Republic also privately expressed surprise at his choice of words. Downing Street tried to smooth things over with a 9.40 p.m. statement."
That statement said: “The prime minister said, as we approached the 30th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, his commitment to every part of it including the principle of consent remained unwavering."
“Every part of it,” the Times report concluded, implied that Burnham accepts the provisions over the calling of a border poll.
"The Belfast Agreement says the UK’s secretary of state for Northern Ireland 'shall' call a Border poll 'if at any time it appears likely to him [or her] that a majority of those voting would express a wish' for Irish unity.
"In practice, this would be the prime minister’s call, probably in consultation with the UK’s cabinet."
So, yes, it's probably not the case that Burnham will be making the call soon. It would appear that in this instance he was referring to his very own table.
But, as stated, there are multiple tables out there and the matter of Irish unity is well set on more than one of them, now and in the future.
