After direct rule: the northern economy will grow closer to south

Reflecting upon yesterday's re-opening of the Northern Ireland Assembly, the Guardian's leader piece argues that 'yesterday's events were only a step in Northern Ireland's development, not any sort of completion' and that, even if 'a united Ireland, in a formal constitutional sense, remains a distant prospect' the conditions for such unity continue to develop.

The Irish economy, historically held back under British colonialism, has developed enormously in recent years in the south whilst in the north it remains weak and reliant upon British subsidy. Undoubtedly, Britain owes the whole island a debt following centuries of occupation, but with the new Assembly the economies of the north and south will become 'more united economically and socially by the day' as the north will be unable to stand alone as Britain seeks to shed its economic burden.

And of course, the results of the Irish general election will greatly affect how welcoming the southern government is toward these growing links. As the leader says, 'success in the north may help [Bertie Ahern] shake off questions about the probity of his government. But it might also help Sinn Fein gain votes south of the border.' Like it or not, Bertie Ahern may find that a deal with Sinn Fein is what he needs to stay in power and, as Martin McGuiness also took the opportunity to announce yesterday Sinn Fein's condition for support in the Dail are 'the completion of a Green Paper on Irish Unity within one year, identifying steps and measures to promote and assist a successful transition to a United Ireland.' He also stated 'we will also appoint a Minister of State with the specific responsibility to oversee this work and to direct and co-ordinate the Government's all-Ireland policies across Departments.'