If the idea were put to a referendum then those in Northern Ireland would probably vote to stay as part of the UK given that the majority of the population is Protestant in belief.

If the referendum was given to the whole of Ireland then the vote would almost certainly be for a united Ireland, but then there would be a lot of people in the North who would be very unhappy as they would be in the minority.

As the whole of Irleand is part of the EU there is nothing to stop people crossing to the UK or any other part of the EU to take up employment. True there is a risk that many of the non Catholics might come to the UK to live but as they would be part of a united Ireland even under EU legislation they could not claim financial support from the Govt in the UK.

The hardest part would be to get both sides of the divide to agree to non violence when a unification does occur. That would mean foreswearing the use of arms on both sides, the IRA and the extreme elements in the so called Loyalist parties.

Recently Sinn Fein was pressured by the US Govt to bring the IRA into line and get rid of the weapons. The same pressure should be applied to both sides.

Maybe then negotiations can begin to bring about a re-unification of Ireland. A huge amount of trust would be placed on both sides.

As for who should chair the negotiations it should not be the UK or US Govt's. Instead a peacefull and neutral country should be used such as Norway, Sweden to chair the negotiations between the North and republic. There is too much political vested interest in both the UK and US goverments. The North's politicians should be acting on their own, working with the Republics politicians, the clergy on both sides should also be working towards the same aim.

There should be commitments and support offered to those who do want to leave the North. The cost would not just be to the Republics government but also to the UK government.

Due to the long and protracted history of Ireland the solutions will never be simple but if most people want a peacefull and united existance then there is hope that it will happen.