Pa Per’ Reveals the Economics of British Occupation
Unfree Citizen1974Peace process and British initiativesPartition and the national questionLoyalism and unionismEconomy, the EEC and EuropePeace process and British initiativesPartition and the national questionLoyalism and unionismEconomy, the EEC and Europe
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television publicity Merlyn Rees announced his spectacular ‘Green Paper’ on Northern Ireland’s economy. Like a schoolboy after working out a difficult sum Ree’s declared that it should put out of people’s heads once and for all the notion that there could ever be any form of independent Northern Ireland State.
His main purpose in the green paper seems to have been to knock the ideas of UDI which have been bandied about by some Loyalists. But in trying to disarm the ‘UDI’ propounders Rees has given perhaps the best clarification yet, on the British army’s real role in Northern Ireland. For his figures disclose that British firms own 45% of the N.1. factories employing more than 500 people. That is, they control almost half of the biggest industries in the 6 Cos. So-called N.1. firms control one one fifth, while America has another one-fifth and EEC the remaining one-tenth.
These figures apply to only the large firms, and the Green Paper hinted that the balance was the same for those employing 200—500 or less.
Rees went on to proudly boast that the British government grant to Northern Ireland was £331m. suggesting that the people were really indebted in a very big way to Britain! Brian Faulkner was quick to back him up as was Bob Cooper of the Alliance Party. But in the rash of implications that Britain is a dear generous old soul shelling out millions of pounds to us each year just because she is so worried about our welfare — one important thing is conveniently overlooked. That is the amount of British money invested in Northern Ireland. Take Ree’s figures that almost 50% of all Northern factories are British-owned and consider the value of the average factory premises and machinery. Such premises like the vast Sirrocco engineering works in Short Strand have buildings and machinery which run to a value of tens of millioms of pounds, not to mention the vast plants owned by Couralds and Goodyear. Further, the firms which are classified in the Green Paper as being NI owned are only so in name — many are effectively the subsidiaries of British and Foreign companies which take on Irish directors to give them the appearance of being native.
Proponents of UDI have quoted the total value of such buildings of £7,000,000,000 — or RISES EACH YEAR. APPROXIMATELY.
live in. and equipment at the colossal sum approximately TWENTY TWO TIMES THE AMOUNT OF THE ANNUAL BRITISH SUBSIDY, AND THREE HUNDRED AND THIRTY THREE TIMES THE AMOUNT SPENT IN THE CURRENT YEAR ON THE MAINTENANCE OF THE ‘SECURFTY* FORGES: AND THE VALUE OF THAT PROPERTY FURTHER, THE GREEN PAPER STATES THAT THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PROFIT LEAVING NORTHERN IRELAND EACH YEAR TO BRITISH OWNERS IS £37,000,000 Even accepting the doubtful word of the imperialists for that, that figure alone is almost twice the cost of ‘security’ each year! And while announcing that £37m — worth of Northern Ireland workers’ labour went into the bank accounts of British profiteers, the Green Paper also says that emigration runs at 6,600 per year, that wages are £4 per week less than in England and that 20% of houses are regarded as unfit to These are the relevant facts to be considered by the anti-Unionist working class when the ‘Green Paper’ is used to justify the link with Britain. From these figures it is clear that Britain is Aot running a state and an army and a police force for charity — SHE IS PROTECTING HER OWN VAST ECONOMIC INVESTMENT IN NORTHERN IRELAND.
Britain is not interested in creating the ‘peace’ she talks about for any honourable reason. She is merely interested in getting stability — stability to continue to exploit 6 Co. workers. But more importantly she is fighting to hold on to the factories — the means of production. Any realistic settlement of the North's problems can only be a socialist one, it must include Irish unity, and that means sharing the natural resources of the country and the means of production throughout the 32 counties. In short it means confiscation of all foreign owned property to be used for the benefit of all the Irish people. That Britain fears and that she is at present paying £33m a year as a bribe to prevent.