SF calls for vote on united Ireland after referendum

Michelle O'Neill and Mary Lou McDonald in Dublin Castle yesterday

Sinn Féin has called for a referendum on a united Ireland following Friday's referendum which backed a repeal of the Eighth Amendment.

Deputy leader Michelle O'Neill said constitutional issues had gained renewed prominence following the Yes vote on changing the Irish Constitution.

Speaking to ITV, Ms O’Neill said: "I think in terms of the conversation at home now it's very much about a union referendum, it's very much about the constitutional future.

"The big decision yesterday in Dublin was a constitutional issue, that is now to the fore.

"People who, particularly people from a unionist background who traditionally in the past wouldn't have had this conversation about where they see themselves in the future are now having that conversation and it's a very healthy and live debate.".

As part of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, the British government accepted the principle of consent, meaning the people of Northern Ireland could decide their own future on the issue.

It recognised the legitimacy of the aspiration for a united Ireland as well as the wish of a majority to remain part of the UK.

The British government has said the time is not right to call a poll on uniting Ireland.

Nationalists have claimed the Brexit result, with its threat of a hard border - which Northern Ireland voted against, had reinvigorated the debate.

Ms O'Neill said the test had been met for a unity poll.

It comes as British Prime Minister Theresa May is facing pressure to reform Northern Ireland's abortion laws following the referendum result.

Two-thirds of voters backed reform, leading to calls for an end to the "anomalous" situation in Northern Ireland.

In a tweet Mrs May congratulated Ireland over the referendum result.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the referendum result means "a case for change, for protecting our health and our lives is now unanswerable".

Speaking on RTÉ's This Week, she also responded to questions about the poster she was seen holding at the referendum result at Dublin Castle, which stated "The North is next".

She said it was not her poster and that call for change has come from the same group of women who pushed for the Yes vote.

"I thought it was a most significant fact that as the result was coming in, it wasn't Sinn Féin raising the Northern [Ireland] issue, but it spontaneously came from the same solidarity of women and sisters who have brought about this historic change."

However, Mrs May faces a political headache over calls to act because her fragile administration depends on the support of the ten Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MPs - who strongly oppose any reform to Northern Ireland's strict laws.

Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

British Secretary Penny Mordaunt - who is responsible for the women and equalities brief - said the referendum signalled a "historic and great day for Ireland" and a "hopeful one for Northern Ireland".

"That hope must be met," she added.

Former holders of the women and equalities role - Nicky Morgan, Amber Rudd, Justine Greening and Maria Miller - all back Ms Mordaunt in support for reform in Northern Ireland, according to a report by the UK edition of the Sunday Times.

But DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland "should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand".

"The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother," he said.