Queen’s Policy Engagement

Free Event: History in the Making – The Ulster Museum and the ‘Troubles and Beyond’…

Queen’s Policy Engagement on May 3, 2019, 11:51 am

| Readers 688

On Good Friday 2018, the Ulster Museum opened its doors, and its collections, to a new commemorative exhibition entitled ‘The Troubles and Beyond’. Displayed across hundreds of objects and images, the gallery documents social, political, and cultural changes in Northern Ireland from the civil rights era to today’s post-conflict society. The ‘Troubles’ affected almost everyone who lived in Northern Ireland and many others from further afield. Inevitably the interpretation of this period of our history is contested in terms of …

Free event – Imagine: The UK’s Future Relationship with the EU…

Queen’s Policy Engagement on March 12, 2019, 5:08 pm

| Readers 740

The date for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union draws ever closer. EU leaders have previously agreed the political declaration that sets out the broad aspirations for the kind of relationship the UK and the EU envisage having after Brexit. But what will this so-called ambitious, broad, deep and flexible partnership actually look like? And how will it, and more immediately UK withdrawal from the EU, impact on the many areas of collaboration that have been built up over 45 years of …

Future Ireland / Uniting our Shared Island by Professor Colin Harvey…

Queen’s Policy Engagement on January 11, 2019, 10:14 am

| Readers 3963

The discussion of Irish unity is gaining momentum; Brexit has altered the nature of this conversation, as more people now reflect on the constitutional future. The debate is already happening, and has been ongoing for some time. That does not mean Irish unity is any closer; it simply suggests a willingness to contemplate this option and to think through the implications. Work by, for example, Claire Mitchell, Andrée Murphy, Paul Gosling, Fintan O’Toole, David McWilliams, Mark Daly, Richard Humphreys, and …

The Future of Referendums: What Role Should They Play and How Should They Be Conducted?

Queen’s Policy Engagement on April 13, 2018, 4:01 pm

| Readers 1306

Referendums are now established as part of the UK’s political landscape. They are widely seen as necessary before some fundamental constitutional changes are made. Politicians will continue from time to time to find it useful to manage conflicts by proposing to put certain decisions to the people. Yet, despite their importance, there has been little concerted thinking recently about how referendums should be conducted. Two inquiries conducted in the 1990s – by the Nairne Commission and the Committee on Standards …

Article 50 one year one – where are we now?

Queen’s Policy Engagement on March 8, 2018, 1:14 pm

| Readers 470

Boats with EU, UK flags sailing in opposite directions

It’s almost a year since Theresa May triggered Article 50 and the past year has been a veritable rollercoaster of ups and downs in the Brexit negotiation process – admittedly more ups than downs! But where exactly are we in the process and what are the implications for Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland? Will the next phase of the negotiations culminate in Downing Street’s end goal of a “a smooth and orderly Brexit?” Join the Queen’s on Brexit …

Closure of Kilroot – or how NOT to manage a ‘just transition’ to a low carbon energy economy

Queen’s Policy Engagement on March 7, 2018, 12:25 pm

| Readers 1730

This is not how you plan a transition from a high to a low carbon energy economy. The announcement a few weeks ago that the operator of Kilroot coal fired power station had lost out in the auction process within the all island Single Electricity Market (I-SEM), and the company announcing it will close the gates in May is not only a disaster for those workers, contractors and communities affected. It is also a major setback for the managed transition …

Implications of Brexit for Northern Ireland: Have your Say…

Queen’s Policy Engagement on January 25, 2018, 4:34 pm

| Readers 1861

When it comes to looking at the implications of Brexit for Northern Ireland, the BrexitLawNI project has been out and about gathering information about the concerns of people living in Northern Ireland. Townhall-style events have taken place in Belfast, Derry and Enniskillen, with more events scheduled next month. BrexitLawNI is a collaborative research project between the Law Schools at Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University as well as the region’s leading human rights organisation, the Committee for the Administration of …