‘After the Riots: What Northern Ireland Thinks’ is More in Common’s first study devoted to public opinion in Northern Ireland. It asks how people responded to last month’s riots, what they make of rising racism, and what they want done on immigration. 

The riots that swept through Belfast and other towns last month, after the attempted murder of Stephen Ogilvie, were among the most serious outbreaks of disorder Northern Ireland has seen in recent years – the third such episode in three years, after the unrest of summer 2024 and the Ballymena riots last year.

Public disorder is not new to Northern Ireland. But where the most serious episodes of past decades ran mainly along sectarian lines, the last three years have seen racist violence that has driven migrant and ethnic-minority families from their homes and attacked their businesses.

Polled in the days after the disorder, the public are more united and more nuanced in their views than social media would suggest. Across communities, large majorities condemn the violence and say it brings shame on Northern Ireland. They worry about rising racism, and about migrants’ safety. Most people want politicians to lower the temperature when tensions flare. And on immigration, while political debate is still stuck on whether the public’s concerns are legitimate, the public itself has moved past that to the question of what should be done about it.

The public call them riots – not protests – and say those involved don’t speak for them

Asked to choose, 62 per cent of people in Northern Ireland call the disorder riots, against just 24 per cent who call them protests – a view held across communities: 70 per cent of nationalists, 72 per cent of ‘other’ voters and a majority (52 per cent) of unionists.

More than three quarters (77 per cent) say those participating do not speak for them, and 60 per cent say the disorder brought shame on Northern Ireland. That view holds in every community.

The public draws a clear line between peaceful protest and everything else. Nine in ten say setting fire to vehicles (90 per cent) or to migrant homes and businesses (87 per cent) is not justified, and 80 per cent say the same of intimidating migrants into leaving the area. Of every action tested, peaceful protest in the street is the only one that a majority (75 per cent) see as justified.

When violence erupts, the public want politicians to lower the temperature

When violence breaks out, three in five (58 per cent) say the main role for politicians is to reduce tensions, correct misinformation and avoid inflaming the situation – the majority view in every community. Just 4 per cent want politicians to encourage people to demonstrate their anger publicly.

Racism now concerns people as much as sectarianism

In a place where division has long run along green and orange lines, this research finds a striking shift in what the public worries about. More than three quarters (76 per cent) now call racism in Northern Ireland a serious problem, just above concern about sectarianism (73 per cent) and ahead of paramilitary activity (68 per cent).

Three in five (60 per cent) say there is more racism than five years ago, and 82 per cent say it is growing online more than anywhere else. Half (50 per cent) say society has not done enough to tackle it.

Worry about people being forced from their homes or businesses because of their nationality or ethnic background stands at 83 per cent – a concern held by at least three in four of every voter group.

Northern Ireland in 2026 is not seen as equally safe for everyone. Most think it is unsafe for migrants (56 per cent) and Muslim people (55 per cent). On this question the green-orange divide has all but vanished: only around one in ten think Northern Ireland is unsafe for unionists (10 per cent) or nationalists (11 per cent).

On immigration, the public want the governments to act together

Immigration now sits in every community’s top-three issues, and unionist voters rank it as their single biggest concern (63 per cent). People worry far more about illegal immigration than legal migration: 78 per cent are concerned about the first, against 34 per cent for legal migration through approved routes.

The public wants the governments to act together. Seven in ten (71 per cent) support the UK Government, Irish Government and NI Executive working together on migration, with just 7 per cent opposed. Even in Britain, two thirds (66 per cent) back the three governments cooperating through an all-island body to manage immigration and asylum across the island of Ireland.

Most (62 per cent) would back immigration checks at the border with the Republic even if that means a harder border – with nationalist voters split down the middle: 45 per cent back checks, 44 per cent want the border to stay open as it is. Debates about borders have become centred around immigration and are no longer purely constitutional questions.

Northern Ireland in a word: divided

Asked to describe Northern Ireland today in one word, the public’s clearest answer is “divided”. Half (49 per cent) say Northern Ireland feels exactly that, against just a quarter (23 per cent) who say “united” – a feeling that crosses the divide it describes.

Beneath that sits a deeper disillusionment. More than half (56 per cent) lean towards the view that the system is rigged to serve the rich and influential, and just under half (46 per cent) lean towards “just let them all burn” when they think about political and social institutions – a view held almost equally by unionists and nationalists, and strongest among non-voters.

Despite everything, three in five (60 per cent) say Northern Ireland’s best years are ahead of us – that is more than twice the share in Britain (26 per cent). And three in four (75 per cent) think people here generally look out for each other. Voters in Northern Ireland are disillusioned with the system and bleak about the state of the place, but their verdict on one another is warmer by far. 

This report is the beginning of More in Common’s broader programme of work in Northern Ireland. These are questions we will return to in the months and years ahead.

Methodology

More in Common polled 1,000 adults in Northern Ireland between 11th and 18th June 2026, using computer-assisted web interviewing. Respondents have been weighted according to age/sex interlocked, local council area, 2022 Assembly election vote, ethnicity, education level and community background.

For further information, please contact: northernireland@moreincommon.com