Ulster Unionist Party Leader Jon Burrows MLA has issued a statement defending the Good Friday Agreement's legal threshold for calling a border poll, following the Prime Minister's comments that a referendum is "not on the table."

Jon Burrows MLA said:

“Since the Prime Minister's accurate and wholly reasonable statement that a border poll isn't on the table, it's important to, yet again, remind everyone of what was agreed in April 1998, and why we should be focused on delivering better government at Stormont.

“The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement is explicitly clear on the terms for calling a border poll. The Northern Ireland Secretary of State has the power to call a referendum ONLY if: '……it appears likely to him that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to become part of the United Kingdom'. (Constitutional Issues, Annex A, Schedule 1, Paragraph 2)

“There is no credible evidence to suggest that a majority of people in Northern Ireland are in favour of it leaving the United Kingdom. Anyone looking to change this test or dilute it is seeking to fundamentally remove one of the core pillars of the Agreement. This would be totally unacceptable and cannot be allowed to happen, as to do so would plunge Northern Ireland into political, social and economic anarchy.

“The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement was an all-encompassing, holistic and hugely difficult compromise for all sides involved. There were parts of it Unionists and Loyalists didn't like, and there were many parts of it that Nationalists and Republicans didn't like.

“Sinn Féin sold the Agreement to their base promising Irish unity by 2016 and it hasn't happened. They have promised their voters a lot of other things too, that they have failed to deliver. So, in 2026, they are frantically trying to deflect from their own incompetence in Government by repeatedly talking about a border poll. The SNP do the same in Scotland.

“Sinn Féin's campaign to rip up what was agreed in 1998 is also being enabled by a number of journalists and commentators in what can only be described as harassment of the NI Secretary of State, Chris Bryant MP.

“Some republicans even have the cheek to call for a Border Poll Commission to be set up, to look at how to dilute, or more likely remove, the test. Again, this would be wholly unlawful and undemocratic.

“None of this behaviour surprises Unionists, especially when we see how Sinn Féin's version of democracy in Belfast City Hall requires only 15% community support to justify the Council imposing Irish language street signs on communities where there is no majority support for them.

“I'm sure the Secretary of State finds all of this rather tedious and annoying, but he's a robust and experienced Government Minister, who understands the law.

“The vast majority of people in Northern Ireland want our country to be successful, prosperous and stable within the United Kingdom. They want Northern Ireland to thrive on every measurable metric, and they know there is no groundswell of support for Northern Ireland leaving the UK.

“The most recent polls in the Republic of Ireland also clearly show that people living there do not view Irish unity as a priority either, which begs the question as to why it is editorially and relentlessly prioritised as a discussion topic on BBC Northern Ireland (in particular) almost every day?

“I am certain that the many paid political commentators in Northern Ireland would love a date for a border poll, because it would be easy money to get paid to write about it. It's certainly much easier than spending time analysing the performance of every Stormont Department and scrutinising what Committees are doing. It's much easier talking about a border poll than analysing the performance of local Councils. It's much easier talking about border polls than examining the intricacies of spending on schools, roads, policing, SEN provision and how to fix our waste-water infrastructure. These subject areas require work and intellectual investment.

“I know there is presently a huge focus on Health - and rightly so - but why is there little to no scrutiny of all the other Departments? Where are the journalists asking all the Ministers about their strategic plans for their Departments for the next 5, 10, 15, 25 years? What do we want Northern Ireland to look like in 2030, 2040 and 2050?

“There is far too much time wasted talking about border polls and issues in the past. Let's focus on the future. The Ulster Unionist Party wants to build a strong, prosperous, new Northern Ireland. We want to realise the ambition of what was agreed in 1998, and we believe that is still possible if we get a strong mandate in 2027.”