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20 J. Common Mkt. Stud. 1 (1981-1982)

handle is hein.journals/jcmks20 and id is 1 raw text is: Journal of Common Market Studies Volume XX, No.1 September 1981 'Northern Ireland: A European Role?'* PAUL HAINSWORTH Lecturer in Politics, Ulster Polytechnic Introduction: Northern Ireland's problems are complex and multifarious. They have been studied and commented upon already from innumerable angles. This article concentrates on one comparatively novel aspect, the interplay between Northern Ireland and the European Community. A number of initial questions may be posed. This brief assessment limits itself primarily to three interdependent questions: How interested is the European Community in Northern Ireland's affairs and, vice-versa, is the interest reciprocal? How does Northern Ireland fare as a peripheral, European region? To what extent do cross-Border links reflect a European dimension. The European Dimension British politicians have always treated the six counties of Northern Ireland as a 'special' region of the United Kingdom. Some local difficulties are, no doubt, familiar but worth recalling. A stranded, peripheral area in British (and European) terms, Northern Ireland suffers due to its narrow, declining, industrial base; excessive unemployment levels; high prices - especially energy, food and transportation costs; poor living and housing standards; low wages and incomes; urban decay; infrastructural weakness; etc. The 'troubles' accentuate these problems, particularly in such fields as housing, unemployment and infrastructure. British governments have consistently stumbled over the hurdle of too- much-or-too-little involvement in Northern Ireland's affairs. With British membership, the European Community formally inherited this dilemma, but follows suit in considering Northern Ireland to be a 'special' problem region. Indeed, the Commission sees Northern Ireland as one of Europe's high priority areas - on a par with Greenland, the Italian Mezzogiorno, the *This article is a revised edition of a paper read at the Department of Politics, University of Bristol, January 1981. rwould like to thank Dr Loukas Tsoukalis and an anonymous referee for their helpful comments on the earlier drafts.