Taoiseach urges caution about border poll talk despite historic Northern Irish census results

The Census 2021 figures, published this morning, show there are more Catholics than Protestants in Northern Ireland for the first time since partition

Catholics outnumber Protestants in Northern Ireland for the first time since the partition of the island, census figures show. Picture: PA Wire

Taoiseach Micheál Martin urged caution about holding a border poll in Northern Ireland on the back ofThursday's census results in Northern Ireland, echoing remarks from Minister Simon Harris earlier today.

The results show that there are more Catholics than Protestants in Northern Ireland for the first time since the partition of the island.

Some 45.7% of the region’s population said they were either Catholic or brought up as a Catholic. The figures for Protestants (and other Christian faiths) was 43.5% while 1.5% were from non-Christian religions.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has urged caution about holding a border poll in Northern Ireland, despite historic census results. File Picture: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

Speaking in New York, Mr Martin said the matter is too sensitive to rush into such talk of a border poll.

He said: “I think we need to be very careful about the demographics as the sensitive issue in terms of the evolution of relationships on the island of Ireland and between Britain and Ireland.

“What it points to me is the growth of neither identity or neither religious affiliation," he said.

He said he detects a genuine sense that people want the Good Friday Agreement to work, a lot of people in Northern Ireland want to institutions back.

He said in his discussions with the British Prime Minister at the weekend, both leaders agreed that the Assembly should be restored as quickly as possible.

“In the recent elections for the Assembly it was very clear that the public in Northern Ireland want their politicians back at their desks, they want them working to alleviate pressures that are on households in Northern Ireland right now in respect of cost of living - and there’s funding available and allocated to relieve those pressures,” he said.

“So I think there’s a huge move and pressure to get the Executive back and the Assembly back, then politics will evolve, but I think we need to see politics working in the first instance and the recent Assembly elections point to the changing approaches people are taking, both in terms of the centreground parties, the Alliance in particular is illustrative of that,” he added.

Simon Harris said it is not unexpected that people would try to parse what the results would mean. Picture: PA

Higher Education Minister Simon Harris had earlier remarked that talk of a border poll should be for "another day". 

Simon Harris said there were more pressing issues affecting people in the region such as getting the Northern Ireland Executive back up and running.

Speaking at the National Ploughing Championship in Co. Laois, where he announced the establishment of three new apprenticeship programmes for farming, the Fine Gael minister said it is not unexpected that people would try to parse what the results would mean.

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"I fundamentally believe though there are really important and urgent things we need to do in relation to Northern Ireland. The first is we need to see the Executive back up and running. Resolving issues in a negotiated way, between the UK and the EU in relation to the protocol so the politics can continue. I think they need to be the immediate priorities." 

He added that discussion about a border poll "is a thing for another day".

"There are so many pressing and immediate issues right now. About trying to tackle the cost of living crisis, trying to properly fund education in Northern Ireland, trying to develop all-island apprenticeships, trying to get the executive back up and running. 

It's not for me to speak for the people of Northern Ireland but I think it's right and proper that that's where their immediate focus is.

Northern Ireland had a significant Protestant majority when it was established in 1921 as part of the partition of Ireland. The last census, in 2011, recorded 48% of the population as being either Protestant or brought up Protestant, down five percentage points on 2001.

The Catholic population stood at 45% 11 years ago, up one percentage point on 2001. The 2021 Census showed 9.3% of the population belonged to no religion – up from 5.6% in 2011.

The publication of the census traditionally prompts debate over what the figures mean for the constitutional future of Northern Ireland. Some may draw a link between the religious breakdown and public opinion on the potential reunification of Ireland.

Others view religious affiliation as a crude metric to measure sentiment on the constitutional question, insisting that being a Protestant or Catholic does not necessarily translate into unionist or nationalist politics. In that respect, more emphasis may be placed on the census figures on national identity.