Vision of a Shared future

The people of Northern Ireland are being asked what kind of future they want to see in a new document issued by the Northern Ireland Office .

A Shared Future, a consultation paper on improving relations in Northern Ireland, was launched by Minister Des Browne to kick off a seven month consultation period. NICVA has welcomed the document, which is long overdue.

Director of Policy, Frances McCandless, said: “Over a year after Dr Jeremy Harbison completed his review of community relations in Northern Ireland for the Executive we are finally seeing this consultation get underway. This is one of the most important issues the voluntary and community sector, and the wider society, will ever debate, as it asks the basic questions about whether people want to try to live together or drift into a ‘benign apartheid’ ".

Over the next six months NICVA will be hosting various events across Northern Ireland to consult on A Shared Future , kicking off with a small roundtable meeting in early March. The document can be found at www.asharedfutureni.gov.uk

Contribute to the Consultation

The Community Relations Council (CRC) has devised an online response form as a helpful tool to guide you through the key questions posed in A Shared Future . It is a short form that includes the seven questions posed in the document, plus some additional prompt questions.