Science fiction and the Irish question

In today’s new episode of Doctor Who, set in the 29th century, the Doctor refers to the still extant United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, now located on a single big spaceship (though there’s reference later to Scotland going their own way). Of course the very British Who would.

On the other hand, in the Star Trek universe, by 2024, according to Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “The High Ground”, Irish unification had been achieved, sadly as a result of terrorism.