Holywell Trust ‘mythbusting’ event to explore Windsor Framework

21 Aug

The Windsor Framework has sparked debate and discussion, but what does it really mean for Northern Ireland's constitutional status and future relationship with Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland?

*Lisa Claire Whitten and David Phinnemore present a seminar on the Northern Ireland Protocol for Holywell Trust, September 2022.*

At 7.00pm on Tuesday 27th August, Holywell Trust will host a public seminar on the Windsor Framework as part of its Future Relationship Conversations series. The event will explain the terms of the agreement and explore the practical implications of its measures for Northern Ireland in the wider context of the constitutional question.

The discussion will be led by Lisa Claire Whitten, Research Fellow and author of ‘Northern Ireland and the UK Constitution’, and David Phinnemore, Professor of European Politics at Queen’s University, Belfast. Both academics will explain what the Windsor Framework means in practice.

Holywell Trust’s Future Relationship Conversations project aims to present a clear and unbiased, fact-based outlook on some of the big topics around the constitutional status of Northern Ireland. The series aims to move the conversation beyond identity-focused assumptions and pre-conceptions.

Holywell Trust director, Gerard Deane said,

“We believe it’s possible to talk about the constitutional issue in a non-divisive way. We think that when the community is engaged and informed, we can talk about these issues in a constructive manner.”
“It’s our hope that this project will contribute to a more reconciled community, who may still disagree, but will better understand each other’s perspectives.”

Other topics in the programme will include the ‘North West Economic Region’ looking at Derry-Londonderry as a border city, and ‘The Constitutional Question Throughout the UK’, which will set our constitutional debate in a wider context of similar conversations in England, Scotland and Wales. A previous session examining Cross-border healthcare was held in July.