The British Government This essay will deal with whether or not the British Government has been successful in dealing with the problems since 1972. On Sunday 30 January 1972, Bloody Sunday took place. The events of this day resulted in further violence and social unrest. This was because Bloody Sunday provided a recruiting incentive for the IRA who stepped up their bombing campaign. All this forced Britain to take responsibility for the troubles that soon followed. Direct rule meant that the province (Northern Ireland) was run by a British government minister, the Northern Ireland Secretary. The British government introduced direct rule because it was a temporary measure to reduce violence in Northern Ireland, but in reality it lasted 25 years. Sinn Fein was an uncompromising nationalist party. They felt that the only way to solve the problems that were occurring was to cut all connections with Britain. Another nationalist group, the SDLP, also wanted reform in Ireland. They believed that the Republic of Ireland should have some influence over the way Northern Ireland was run. Even the minority of the SDLP party felt the need for the protection of the population. The UUP, a unionist party, also agreed that some political reforms were needed in Northern Ireland. However, they felt that the Irish Republic should not be involved in this process. A hardline unionist group, the DUP, simply wanted to defeat the IRA. They wanted to reduce the amount of violence and thought that by defeating the IRA this would be possible. However, to do this they needed a huge security effort. The aim behind power-sharing was to weaken support for the IRA by giving the nationalist community a say in how Northern Ireland was run. Power sharing lasted only 5 months in Northern Ireland. The key idea behind power-sharing was that a new assembly and council would be established in Northern Ireland. This was a positive consequence as it meant that the assembly and council gave Belfast, Dublin and London the opportunity to sit down and discuss issues of interest that each of them