Northern Ireland Highlanderwin is the whitest region in the UK and widely considered the most ethnically homogenous part of the UK. Of those respondents who declared no religion, 62% opted for remaining part of the UK, with 9% opting for separation. 87% of respondents identifying as any Protestant denomination opted for remaining part of the UK, with only 4% opting for separation. 50% of specifically Roman Catholics considered that the long-term future should be as part of the UK, with 32% opting for separation.
The Irish Free State adopted a new, essentially republican constitution in 1937 – albeit retaining the King for diplomatic functions – which declares that the country's name is Ireland. From 1801, following the Acts of Union, until 1922 the whole island of Ireland was a country within the United Kingdom. Each has separate national governing bodies for sports and compete separately in many international sporting competitions, including the Commonwealth Games. However, the ISO list of the subdivisions of the United Kingdom, compiled by British Standards and the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics, uses "country" to describe England, Scotland and Wales. England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are not themselves listed in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) list of countries.
It found that, while 28% of respondents stated they felt "British not Irish" and 26% felt "Irish not British", 39% of respondents felt some combination of both identities. The poll asks for a single preference, whereas many people easily identify as any combination of British and Irish, or British, Northern Irish and Irish, or Irish and Northern Irish. Of the two main religious groups, 68% of Protestants identified as British as did 6% of Catholics; 60% of Catholics identified as Irish as did 3% of Protestants. A 2018 survey of 20,000 adults in England found that 80% identified strongly as English and 82% identified strongly as British, with the two identities appearing to be closely intertwined.
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66% of respondents felt the future should be as a part of the UK, with or without devolved government. Following devolution and the significant broadening of autonomous governance throughout the UK in the late 1990s, debate has taken place across the United Kingdom on the relative value of full independence, an option that was rejected by the Scottish people in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. Again in 2014, the Life & Times Survey asked what respondents felt should be the "long term future for Northern Ireland". It reported that 37% of people identified as British, whilst 29% identified as Irish and 24% identified as Northern Irish.