Аннотация:
The devolved government in Northern Ireland pledged to work for a `shared and better
future for all' in its Programme for Government 2008 ^ 11. In pursuit of this goal it launched a
consultation document entitled Programme for Cohesion, Sharing and Integration which challenged
the assumption that division and segregation is a `normal' pattern of living. I locate the policy
proposals contained within the new programme in the research on community cohesion in Great
Britain. I interrogate, using attitudinal data, people's preferences for the kind of society they want
Northern Ireland to become and the policy consequences of their choices. Using two case studies in
education and housing, I highlight the benefits of a shared society and question whether Northern
Ireland can embrace the core elements of an intercultural society.