Irish Republic (Hansard, 3 July 1992)

§ Sir Patrick Mayhew

The Government believe that there should be a place in strands 2 and 3 of the talks for a discussion of constitutional issues. My predecessor's statement of 26 March 1991 made it clear that it would be open to each of the participants in the talks to raise any aspects of the relevant relationships including constitutional issues. The Government will seek, as a product of the talks process as a whole, an unambiguously expressed consensus on the constitutional issues and a framework for relationships which will be genuinely acceptable to all. We believe that such an outcome should thereby enable all participants to acknowledge Northern Ireland's present status as a part of the United Kingdom, and to recognise that there will be no change in that status without the consent of a majority of the people who live there, that the present wish of a majority of the people of Northern Ireland is for no change but that, if in the future a majority of the people of Northern Ireland clearly wish for and formally consent to the establishment of a united Ireland, both Governments will introduce and support legislation to give effect to that wish. In so far as this is considered to have implications for articles 2 and 3 of the Irish constitution, I welcome the Taoiseach's public assurance that they are among the constitutional matters which the Irish Government envisage would be "on the conference table" during the talks.