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British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer cannot duck and dive on the issue of Irish reunification and must instead commit to holding a referendum on constitutional change by 2030, Sinn Fein’s leader has insisted.

Mary Lou McDonald said the incoming government in Dublin must also take “urgent” steps to start planning for unity, including by creating the role of minister for unity.

The Sinn Fein president made the comments in Belfast as she published a report detailing the work of her own party’s Commission on the Future of Ireland.

Ms McDonald said her previously stated aim of having referendums on both sides of the Irish border by the end of the decade remained realistic, despite Sinn Fein failing to emerge victorious in the last Irish general election and with the party appearing to have little realistic prospect. to be part of the new coalition administration in Dublin.

She said Fianna Fail and Fine Gael – who will lead the new government – needed to publish a green paper on unity; appoint a Minister for Unity in the Department of the Taoiseach; establish a parliamentary committee to review issues surrounding constitutional change; and also form a citizens’ assembly to deal with the same kind of issues.

Under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, a border inquiry should be called in Northern Ireland by the sitting Northern Ireland Secretary when he/she considers there is evidence that public opinion in the region has shifted in favor of constitutional change. In that case, a simultaneous vote would also be held in the Republic of Ireland.

Successive British governments have consistently declined to state publicly what criteria will be applied when gauging public sentiment on the issue. Sir Keir has insisted the question of calling a referendum is “not even on the horizon”.

McDonald said it was no longer tenable for the British government to hold such a position.

“The referendums are part of the Good Friday Agreement,” she told the event in west Belfast.

“It’s a binding agreement, both governments, both states, have signed this agreement. So the referendums are a reality of life. It’s not a question of will they happen. It’s a question of timing. And I think the the British prime minister, the prime minister-elect, Keir Starmer, now has to be faithful to the obligations of that agreement, and that means you can’t just duck and dive or pretend you haven’t committed you to referendums.

“It’s there, frankly, in black and white in that agreement. So I hope and anticipate that with a new administration and a new government coming into place in Dublin, with a new Labour-led government – ​​remember the original champions of the Good Friday Agreement – ​​we will see positive progress and a new sense of realism about what needs to happen next.

“And by the way, it’s still my belief, it’s still our belief that referendums must happen at the end of this decade. The process has moved on. It’s evolved. But the process of reconciliation and rebuilding across the island must always have momentum. It must always be moving forward.”

McDonald said any citizens’ assembly that is established must reflect all shades of opinion within the trade union movement.

She insisted there was a “significant section” of the Unionist/Protestant population in Northern Ireland who were ready for the talk of unity.

“We are very clear that those of us who fight for, who promote the cause of Irish reunification and all the collective possibilities that bring, have a job to persuade, engage, reassure, challenge and be challenged.” she said.

“All that work remains to be done. What we are highlighting today through the work of our own commission is the significant work that has been done so far. But it is by no means the end of the story, let alone the end of the story. And that is where the role of the Irish Government is really, really important. We think it is a reasonable and responsible position that the Dublin Government must now lead by example.”