US President Donald Trump said he’d love to see Ireland unified, claiming it will eventually happen.
Donald Trump said (Image: Getty)
US President Donald Trump said he does not “want to cause any problems” but would “love to see Ireland unified”. He claimed, “It will happen eventually.” The US president met with Micheál Martin, Ireland’s Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister), at the Farmleigh Estate in Dublin. Speaking to the press during his two-day visit to Ireland, Trump said it would be a “great feather in everybody’s cap” if there was unification.
He said that the “UK will have something to say about it”, but “how can it be bad?” He had been asked by a reporter for his views on Irish reunification.
Trump said: “Well, I don’t want to cause any problem. I will tell you, I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides. Great people there. Irish people. How can they be bad, right? I’d love to see it unified. I think it would be great. Yeah, a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually… It’s going to happen eventually. Things will happen. Now we’re talking about it. And you got the right man over here to get it moving. But, yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing. Now, the UK will have something to say about it, obviously, but I think it would be a great thing. I mean, how can it be bad?”
US President Donald Trump arrived in Dublin on Saturday (Image: Getty)
Trump arrived at Dublin Airport on Saturday morning, where he was welcomed by Tánaiste Simon Harris before travelling into the city. Trump is now at Deerfield, the US ambassador’s official residence, where he is expected to deliver a speech to guests. He will later travel to his golf resort in Doonbeg, County Clare, where the Irish Open golf tournament is being held. Protests are expected in Dublin on Saturday afternoon, with demonstrators planning to gather under the slogan “No Welcome for Trump.”
Last month, Andy Burnham ruled out calling a referendum on Irish unification. He said that a border poll is “off the table”.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said during his first official visit to Northern Ireland: “I will take a collaborative approach but some issues will be off the table, and that is one issue that will be off the table.
“I think we’ve got to focus on bringing people together as best we can, and I think we’ve lived through a decade where there’s been a referendum on Brexit, we had Scottish independence just before it.
“What we find is the rifts that come from those situations take a long time to heal, and it sets you right back and you can’t focus on what’s right in front of us here and now, the cost-of-living pressures that are hurting people in Northern Ireland, the need to get that budget set so that public services can function as they should.
“These are the things right in front of us and sometimes politicians go to things that they want to see, as opposed to getting the solutions that the public need.
“I think a decade since the Brexit referendum, I think we’ve had too much division, too much arguing, too much backward looking.
“We need to fix the things right in front of us in the here and now.”
The Good Friday Agreement (also known as the Belfast Agreement) recognises the right of the people of the island of Ireland to bring about a united Ireland, subject to the consent of both parts.
The Northern Ireland Act 1998 states that “if at any time it appears likely to him that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom and form part of a united Ireland”, the Secretary of State shall make an Order in Council enabling a border poll.
However, the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement left several matters relating to border polls unclear. One example is that there is no detail in the agreement on how the Secretary of State should judge whether there is a majority support in Northern Ireland for Irish unification. There is also debate as to what form a border poll should take.
A spokesman for Taoiseach Micheál Martin has been asked if Trump’s comments about a united Ireland would make any difference to Government policy, The Irish Times reports.
They said: “No, our Good Friday agreement and programme for government commitments remain.”
Older state pensioners can cut BBC TV Licence bill to £0 in 16 minutes
A TV Licence currently costs £180 per year.
A TV Licence currently costs £180 per year (Image: Getty)
Older state pensioners across the UK can cut their TV Licence bill down to £0 in just 16 minutes if they meet certain criteria.
The annual fee for a TV Licence currently costs £180 and is due to rise again in April. The UK Government agreed that the TV Licence fee would increase in line with inflation for the remaining four years of the Charter period, which runs until the end of 2027, so another hike to bills is looming in early 2027. You need a TV Licence to watch or record programmes on a TV, computer, or other device on any channel or service as they are broadcast – including on-demand BBC programmes on BBC iPlayer, as well as live events on streaming services.
While most households must pay the annual £180 fee, it’s possible to get a TV Licence at a discounted rate in some cases and for some older pensioners, this fee can be avoided entirely, effectively cutting bills down to £0 simply thanks to one Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefit: Pension Credit.
Pension Credit provides extra money to people who have reached State Pension age and are on a low income, and it is worth £4,300 per year on average, according to the DWP.
The benefit tops up your weekly income to £238 if you’re single, or your joint weekly income to £363.25 if you have a partner, but it also unlocks access to other financial support, too – including a free TV Licence if you’re aged 75 or over.
According to the DWP, it only takes 16 minutes on average to apply for Pension Credit and by doing so, you can unlock thousands of pounds worth of extra financial support.
The DWP said last year: “The online claim form – updated by the Work and Pensions Secretary after listening to the views of pensioners– means it now takes just 16 minutes on average to apply for Pension Credit and be eligible for up to £4,300, with 90 percent of new customers applying using the simple online form, or over the phone.”
If you already get Pension Credit, then you can apply for a free TV Licence when you’re 74, but you’ll need to continue paying for your licence until the end of the month before your 75th birthday. After this, you’ll be covered by your free licence.
Commenting on the perks of claiming the DWP benefit, Sarah Pennells, consumer finance specialist at Royal London, said: “Pension Credit is a valuable benefit because it is a ‘gateway’ benefit. That means, if you’re able to claim it, you may also be able to get help with housing costs (through Council Tax discount and Housing Benefit or Support for Mortgage Interest).
“You’re also eligible for a free TV licence if you’re aged 75 or over and you may be able to get help with NHS dental treatment, prescriptions and transport costs. If you’re entitled to these benefits, the state help you get could be very valuable and that could make a real difference to your finances.
For those who don’t meet the eligibility criteria for Pension Credit, there are other ways to reduce your TV Licence bill, or avoid the fee entirely.
If you no longer watch live on any channel, TV service or streaming service, or use BBC iPlayer, it may be worth cancelling your TV Licence and in some cases, you could be eligible for a refund if, before your licence expires, you won’t be doing any of the following:
- watching TV on any channel, like BBC, ITV, Channel 4, U&Dave and international channels
- watching TV on pay TV services, like Sky, Virgin Media and EE TV
- watching live TV on streaming services, like YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.
- using BBC iPlayer
This includes recording and downloading programmes on any device. But if you still need your TV Licence there are other ways to reduce the cost.
If you live in a residential care home, supported housing or sheltered accommodation, then you may be entitled to a reduced fee TV Licence, and if you’re blind (severely sight impaired) and can provide the appropriate evidence, you can apply for a 50% discount on your TV Licence. But if neither of these apply then you’ll have to pay for a TV Licence at the full rate.
TV licence: A look at reforms made to fee in 2022
If you don’t meet the eligibility criteria for Pension Credit or qualify for a reduced fee TV Licence, then there are still a few options to save money.
TV licences are per household, not per person, so if you live in a house with several people, you don’t all need to have one and could all chip in to share the cost of one licence. Instead, you can share a TV Licence among the whole household if you watch TV in a single shared area, or have a joint tenancy agreement. But if you have separate tenancy agreements and watch TV in your own room, then you will need to pay for your own.
You also don’t need a TV Licence to watch streaming services, such as Netflix and Disney Plus, on-demand TV through services like All 4 and Amazon Prime Video, videos on websites such as YouTube, or DVDs and Blu-rays.
So if you’re happy to just stick to watching any of these, and not watch or record any live TV or BBC iPlayer, you can save yourself £180 per year. But if you do watch or record live TV without a TV Licence, then you can be issued a fine of up to £1,000.