Economic Beliefs and Politics in Northern Ireland

Author(s): Bernadette Hayes and Ian McAllister
Document Type: Chapter
Year: 1997
Title of Publication: Social Attitudes in Northern Ireland:The Sixth Report
Publisher: Appletree Press
Place of Publication: Belfast
ISBN: 0-86281-637-8
Pages: 153-169
Subject Area(s): Economic Issues

Abbreviations: NI - Northern Ireland, NI - Northern Ireland Social Attitudes, DUP - Democratic Unionist Party

Background to the Research

  • The popular image of NI politics is of a sectarian conflict between two monolithic religious communities, Protestant and Catholic. Despite this popular interpretation, economic conditions and the political conflict in NI remain closely associated. However, the extent to which economic beliefs differ between Catholics and Protestants, the causes of any variations, and how they may differ from their British counterparts, has rarely been investigated empirically.
  • This chapter examines popular economic beliefs in NI, how they differ by religion, and their contribution to both party support and to preferences for a constitutional solution. Consideration is also given in this chapter to how they differ from economic beliefs in Britain.

Research Approach

  • In order to analyse the economic beliefs in NI, the NISA surveys, conducted since 1989, have consistently asked respondents' views on five questions, (largely based on parallel questions asked in the British Social Attitudes Survey) ranging from redistribution of income and wealth, to views about business management.

Main Findings

  • The data reveals, at least as far as economic beliefs are concerned, the NI electorate would be characterised as more left-wing than right-wing. On average, however, 13 per cent more Catholics than Protestants support the left-wing view on each of the five questions, which suggests a much stronger economic reformist base of support among Catholics than among Protestants.
  • In comparing the economic beliefs of the two NI communities with those in the three nations in Britain, Protestants are much closer in their views to the English than are Catholics. In turn, the economic beliefs of Catholics are closest to those of the Scottish.
  • Education is a more important predictor of economic beliefs in NI than it is in Britain, which may reflect the diversion of political debate in the province away from material concerns, so that it is only the better educated who adopt firm views on such matters.
  • In terms of economic beliefs and partisanship, there are significant variations among supporters of the main political parties. The parties whose supporters are the most economically conservative are the Ulster Unionists and the Alliance Party. The most economically radical within the Protestant community are the supporters of the DUP. DUP supporters are only slightly less radical than the SDLP supporters, though substantially less radical than Sinn Fein supporters.

Conclusions

  • Despite continuing political polarisation, the results show that it is socio-economic differences and not religious differences which distinguish economics beliefs within NI.
  • As a group, Protestants are significantly more likely to favour a more conservative approach to the question of economic management than their more radical Catholic counterparts.
  • The impact of these economic divisions continues even when political affiliation and constitutional preferences are considered.
  • Results suggest that economic issues represent a potential middle-ground for politicians within NI. Political leaders who wish to transcend the current religiously- based constitutional divisions would be advised to concentrate on these economic issues.
 

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