February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Andrew Bushe
DUBLIN — Support for the Northern Ireland peace deal has grown since last year’s referendum according to a new poll.
The poll found that 73 percent in the North would support the agreement now compared to just over 71 percent in the referendum last year.
On the issue of the decommissioning of paramilitary arms, 54 percent wanted them handed over before a ruling executive is formed.
A total of 77 percent of Protestants polled believe an executive could only be formed after a handover of guns, compared with 23 percent of Catholics.
Only 9 percent of Catholics believed republican paramilitaries should never decommission and 3 percent of Protestants took a similar attitude to loyalist groups.
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Only a narrow majority, 52 percent, said they feel the peace pact will remain in place for a another year, while 31 percent believe it will collapse, and 17 percent are uncertain.
Only 4 percent were very confident that there will be a lasting peace, while almost a quarter were not at all confident — 43 percent were not very confident and 26 percent were fairly confident.
Almost three-quarters (70 percent) believe politicians should compromise, while 27 percent said they should stick to their principles.
The poll found a deep division on the question of the future of the RUC, with 66 percent of Catholics wanting a new force and 76 percent of Protestants disagreeing.
Ulster Marketing Surveys interviewed 1,000 voters in Northern Ireland’s 18 constituencies last week for the Irish Times and RTE’s "Prime Time" program.