Audio interview with Humphrey Atkins, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, in 1979. On 4 May Atkins was appointed Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. In autumn of that year he published proposals for an end to direct rule and the restoration of government in Northern Ireland through a local body, inviting four political parties, the DUP, UUP, SDLP and Alliance Party, to discuss the proposal. In this interview Atkins outlines his proposals. Although the party talks did commence later that year they soon collapsed, the UUP and later the SDLP boycotting the conference.
Date of Release/Broadcast: 1979
Name of First Interviewee: Humphrey Atkins
Role at time of Interview: Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Purpose: News
Media: Audiovisual
Copyright:
Link: Watch the interview
Programme/Book/Article: BBC Northern Ireland Stormont Today
Time Period covered: 1974-1979
Key Individuals: Humphrey Atkins
Key Words: British government, power-sharing, policing, Sinn Féin, UUP, DUP, SDLP, Alliance Party