These are deep waters and Ms Bradley was plainly out of her depth. Since 2010, they have too often given the Northern Ireland job to second-raters who know little history and have shallow political instincts. Predictably, this culture of sloppiness towards Northern Ireland has fed into the Brexit debacle. A stronger Northern Ireland secretary than James Brokenshire might have insisted that a DUP deal must be conditional on the resumption of power-sharing. A more strategic prime minister than Theresa May might have faced down her English nationalist rightwing over the importance of the Northern Ireland backstop to the withdrawal agreement.

Source: The Guardian March 07, 2019 18:33 UTC