THE TWO largest unionist parties have both welcomed a new civic society group that aims to "celebrate Northern Ireland" and counter the campaign for Irish unity.
We Make NI, which is expected to be launched early next year, is seeking to "debate our shared future in an inclusive, imaginative and a positive way".
The group is made up of so-called 'small u' unionists, most of whom have no party political affiliations.
The nascent movement is currently keeping its plans under wraps, with a recently created Twitter account – @WeMakeNI – its only public activity to date.
The Irish News understands that the group has formed a series of sub-groups and that it will seek to promote the "Northern Ireland brand" rather than terming itself unionist.
The establishment of We Make NI comes as Northern Ireland as a political entity faces its greatest existential challenge since its formation almost 100 years ago.
In recent years unionism has lost its majority in the Stormont assembly, while Brexit has given fresh momentum to the case for Irish unity.
Political blogger Alan Meban said We Make NI was responding to the growing debate around ending partition.
"The challenge for any civic group is to inject new ideas and allow fresh voices to be heard without making the work of political parties they broadly support more difficult, or seeming to be in bed with those parties," he told The Irish News.
"But with organisations like Ireland’s Future gathering momentum, there is a need for civic unionism to be present in those debates as well as creating their own narratives about aspirations for an improved union at a time when the ‘U’ in UK looks increasingly distressed."
In recent years former DUP leader Peter Robinson has urged unionism to prepare for a border poll, likening it to insuring a house, even though you don't expect it to burn down.
DUP East Antrim MLA Gordon Lyons welcomed the new group.
"The centenary of Northern Ireland is not just about reflecting on the last 100 years, but also about looking forward to the type of future we all want to build," he said.
An Ulster Unionist spokesperson said: "It's very welcome to hear about groups being established to bring people together to discuss and promote an inclusive Union for all and we look forward to hearing more in the days and weeks ahead."
The Irish News contacted a representative of We Make NI but they declined to comment.
