More couples are bridging the Protestant-Catholic divide than ever before, but many remain unwilling to talk about it, writes Jemimah Steinfeld.

As we enter the period of 1914-18 centenaries, Northern Ireland offers some pointers as to how to tackle some of the more difficult issues the rest of the UK will face, such as the nature of the war and how it should be commemorated, writes Richard Grayson.

Youth unemployment and a failure of multi-culturalism have fed into the current troubles in Northern Ireland, writes Dr Robin Wilson.

Some years ago a Council of Europe expert visiting Belfast as part of a study on cultural diversity was struck by a meeting with representatives of the small Chinese, Indian and Pakistani communities. Not only did his interlocutors feel that the overwhelming focus in Northern Ireland on the divide between the two main cultural ‘traditions’ left their identities marginalised, but also those in attendance who were drawn from the Protestant and Catholic communities felt that a broader approach to cultural diversity would be welcome for its own sake and in helping to lower the political intensity of sectarian debates.