Education minister John O'Dowd urges Queen's University students to vote for a united Ireland

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By Rebecca Black

October 15 2014 12:03 AM

Education minister John O'Dowd has weighed into a controversial debate over plans for a referendum on a united Ireland at Queen's University.

Last week the Belfast Telegraph revealed unionist concerns and attempts to get the poll stopped.

The Sinn Fein group at the Belfast university has gathered the 600 signatures required by the Students' Union to hold a referendum. Although it has not yet submitted the petition to the union, chairman Sean Fearon said the vote would take place on October 28. Sinn Fein started campaigning for a Yes vote online yesterday.

Mr O'Dowd used his personal Twitter account to urge students to vote for a united Ireland.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Education said: "The Twitter account is the minister's personal Twitter account not a ministerial one."

Many unionist students feel the poll will worsen what they believe is already a tense political atmosphere at Queen's. UUP MLA Tom Elliott last week led a delegation of students to meet Queen's Vice-Chancellor Patrick Johnston to ask the referendum be stopped. The party plans to seek advice from the Equality Commission.

But Mr Fearon said: "It's disappointing that people have gone to extraordinary lengths to try and block the referendum instead of engaging with the debate and putting forward a logical and reasoned argument for the union."