Matters have not been helped by the remarks attributed to David Trimble, Leader of the UUP, who told the Chicago Sun Times that if Catholicism and anti-Britishness were removed, the Republic of Ireland would not have a reason to exist. Last March Mr. Trimble also caused controversy in his speech to his party's ruling council when he was reported as describing the Republic of Ireland as a pathetic, monoethnic and monocultural state. These remarks ignore the country's valuable Ango-Irish and Jewish traditions and the emerging multi-cultural dimension, especially in the capital city.