Neptune to the Common-wealth of England (1652): the republican Britannia and the continuity of interests

In the seventeenth century, John Kerrigan reminds us, “models of empire did not always turn on monarchy”. In this essay, I trace a vision of “Neptune’s empire” shared by royalists and republicans, binding English national interest to British overseas expansion. I take as my text a poem entitled “Neptune to the Common-wealth of England”, prefixed to Marchamont Nedham’s 1652 English translation of Mare Clausum (1635), John Selden’s response to Mare Liberum (1609) by Hugo Grotius. This minor work is read alongside some equally obscure and more familiar texts in order to point up the ways in which it speaks to persistent cultural and political interests. I trace the afterlife of this verse, its critical reception and its unique status as a fragment that exemplifies the crossover between colonial republic and imperial monarchy at a crucial moment in British history, a moment that, with Brexit, remains resonant

Public policy and peace walls in Belfast

A series of specific knowledge exchange activities took place over a 12 month period. This included hosting regular community engagement activities with those living in closest proximity to the peace walls and with their community representatives as well as the facilitation of regular dialogue between the various departmental policy makers and the community through a series of policy roundtable discussions. Eight core questions were ideintified at the oustet which allowed for flexibility to explore issues raised in more detail. These questions were: 1.How does the Northern Ireland Executive deal with the broader issue of segregation in Northern Ireland society? 2.How should policy address the view within the protestant community that the peace walls and other physical structures serve to protect their identity, community and territory? 3.How does government engage with young people particularly around the peace walls programme? 4.How does government foster an effective consultation process with communities living in closest proximity to these walls and evaluate these processes? 5.How can we establish the relevant qualitative and quantitative data systems to measure progress on outcomes? 6.How will developments in other policy areas, such as community planning and community safety, impact on the development of the peace walls policy? 7.What are the roles and responsibilities of the Northern Ireland Executive and the various government departments therein; of local government; of community and voluntary groups; of external funders; and of local residents in supporting the implementation of the strategy? 8.What are the potential policy blockages which may impede policy development in this area and how might these be addressed? A 'peace wall' is the name now commonly used to describe the massive physical structures used to divide the two main communities in Northern Ireland, primarily in the Belfast area. The first 'peace wall' was constructed almost fifty years ago in 1969 to separate the Catholic Falls Road and the Protestant Shankill Road in Belfast. At the time, it was considered a short-term policy intervention. An Army Major, overseeing the construction of the wall said: 'This is a temporary measure... we do not want to see another Berlin wall situation in Western Europe... it will be gone by Christmas'. Despite the successes of the peace process, such segregation and division are still part of the daily reality for many in Northern Ireland. In 2014, that wall still remains and has been accompanied by one hundred additional walls and barriers, stretching to more than 26 miles in length across the city. Indeed, the peace walls have come to symbolize the ongoing gulf between the aspirations of the peace process and the implementation of peace in practice. It is against this backdrop that our knowledge exchange partnership project exists. The rationale for our project has been driven by the Northern Ireland government's recently published community relations strategy document, Together: Building a United Community (May 2013) which set itself the ambitious target of removing ALL interface barriers (peace walls) by 2023. However, our previous research has shown that 69% of local residents living in closest proximity to the peace walls believe that the peace walls are still necessary because of the potential for violence. Clearly much works will need to be undertaken with these communities in order for the government to achieve its policy objectives. The project will generate extra value in terms of both scholarship and impact by using social science insights to maximise the chances of efficient and effective policy delivery. We will achieve this through direct and sustained engagement with senior policy-makers and practitioners connected to the Northern Ireland Executive's peace walls implementation strategy. By embedding the academic team within the Department of Justice for 12 months, working with their newly established Interface Action Team (IAT) which has lead responsibility for delivery of this strategy, opportunities for efficient and effective policy delivery will be enhanced. A series of research objectives have been identified in partnership with the IAT. These include the design, delivery and analysis of a further public attitudes survey, preliminary research on designing the next steps in practical interventions in interface areas building on existing investments from external funders such as the International Fund for Ireland, conducting a review of existing mechanisms for managing peace walls, and establishing baseline indicators to assist in mapping progress in the implementation of the peace walls initiative over the next 10 years. This will also lead to a series of roundtable workshops with academics and senior civil servants, the establishment of a database which brings together relevant statistical and qualitative information on interface areas and a number of evidence-based policy briefs designed to encourage wider participation and consultation in policy development.</p

Teaching politics to small groups

Teaching politics to small group

Potentially Voting across the Divide in Deeply Divided Places: Ethnic Catch-All Voting in Consociational Northern Ireland

I elaborate a model of cross-bloc party support in deeply divided places. The model expects that the variation in the level of electoral support that citizens in Community A have for parties in Community B is a function of citizens' evaluations of the relative ability of parties in Community B to represent the interests of all communities. This 'ethnic catch-all' model of cross-bloc party support is tested in the context of consociational Northern Ireland, using data from a representative survey conducted directly after the 2010 Westminster general election. The findings are asymmetric: the model explains Protestant support for nationalist parties but not Catholic support for unionist parties. The findings, and their implications, are discussed.</p