REFERENDUMS on Irish unity should take place on both sides of the border only when there is a clear plan of what follows, a group of academics has recommended.
The interim report from the 12-member Working Group on Unification Referendums on the Island of Ireland also notes that the rules governing a border poll and the associated campaigns are "badly out of date".
The academics from a range of institutions across Ireland, Britain and the US are looking at how concurrent referendums in Northern Ireland and the Republic would be conducted, and how the degree of political and social upheaval that may follow in their aftermath can be minimised.
Funded by the British Academy and Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, the group's key recommendations are that once the necessary circumstances are met, the British and Irish governments should begin planning for the polls at the earliest opportunity, while also mapping out the potential consequences arising from the result.
They argue that in deciding whether to call a referendum, the secretary of state must ensure "transparent honesty" and reflect on a range of evidence, such as election results and opinion polls.
The report says it is the responsibility of the Dublin government to develop proposals for what form a future united Ireland would take, either before or after a poll.
Pointedly, the authors note "no perfect solution is available".
Working group chair Dr Alan Renwick said the academics do not believe a border poll is imminent but that it was important to ensure the process was worked out in advance, as the failure to plan ahead of the 2016 Brexit referendum had caused "years of acrimony".
"To hold another referendum without a proper plan would risk the legitimacy of such a vote and political stability on the island of Ireland," he said.
The interim report was published as Taoiseach Micheál Martin launched the first of his department's Shared Island Dialogue events.
Designed to gauge opinion from a range of civil society groups and individuals across Ireland, the inaugural event focused on young people.
Speaking in Dublin, the taoiseach said "no future is pre-ordained under the Good Friday Agreement".
"No matter how certain anyone claims to be, the truth is that no government, no political party, and no one person or group has all the answers," he said.
"Experience has shown that open, respectful, informed civic dialogue is a vitally important part of seeking resolutions and building agreement on complex societal issues."
