‘Your Party’ has become the first major political party in Britain to campaign for a United Ireland.

At the first party conference to be held by the party, which was formed in September, a motion was passed which read: “As a point of principle, branches shall not be established in any part of the island of Ireland. Given the inalienable right of self-determination, the Party shall not seek to politically organise in Ireland, but shall instead act as a persuader for Irish unification - by peaceful consent - and as a supporter of its advocates.”

Popular support for the current Labour government collapsed since its election last year.

It has so far refused to lay out a pathway to an Irish unity vote, refusing to acknowledge a growing clamour and public support for plans to implement a key outstanding element of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

Following the foundation of the new party under former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Zarah Sultana, and others, ‘Your Party’ is tipped to play a major role in British politics in the future.

The party’s stance on Ireland reflects a swing in support across Ireland and Britain in favour of Irish reunification.

In particular, former unionists and moderate members of the Protestant community in the north of Ireland are increasingly engaging with planning for a united Ireland.

Speaking to the Derry News, author Ben Collins, who grew up in a pro-unionist, pro-British family in East Belfast, described the 1998 Good Friday Agreement as “changing everything”.

And after attending the Scottish National Party conference in 2002, he remembered discussion around “fiscal autonomy” for Scotland.

“I thought, ‘This makes a lot of sense’ because you want to have more control over your own affairs,” said Collins.

“Admiring Scottish nationalism from the outside was the gateway to me thinking, ‘Well actually, maybe we could have a United Ireland’,” he added.

“The thing was, growing up I was not taught Irish history at all. The first time I found out Ireland had been one country originally was when I watched a black and white documentary about the Easter Rising. I can’t remember what age I was but I remember thinking, ‘What, they shot people for being part of the Rising?’ and then realising we were one country.

“Because you grow up in a Unionist background and you are told to believe Northern Ireland has always been British but that is obviously not right.

“It was beginning to understand that and then learning basic things like the Tricolour was green, white and orange, the green and orange representing the two main traditions in Ireland, with peace between them.”

He was speaking at the launch of his new book on Irish unity, ‘The Irish Unity Dividend’, on Monday.

He said he was also inspired by the United Irishmen and Women, who united Protestant, Catholic and Dissenter - those of all religions and none - behind the cause of freedom from British rule.

“My thinking evolved over decades but what was a long-term aspiration for me became an urgent necessity after Brexit,” he added.

“Brexit forced us to choose. Brexit is why you are seeing more people from Northern Ireland than ever before getting Irish passports.

“They want to maintain the European identity. An increasing number of people from a unionist background, like me, are open to the idea of Irish Unity for all sorts of reasons, including European identity.

“I believe the EU is the greatest peace project our continent has ever seen. I think it is hugely important and I do not want to lose that and that is one of the things I was very concerned about after the Brexit vote.

“We in the North voted to stay in the EU, like Scotland, but we were taken out of it and I think that, in a very real sense, emphasised to me, if we want to control our own destiny, we need to have a United Ireland.”