Newly released State Papers reveal former Taoiseach John Bruton’s skepticism towards Sinn Féin and the SDLP’s representation of northern nationalists. Despite concerns from these parties regarding his leadership, Bruton sought to understand the true desires of nationalists through opinion polling. His analysis indicated that there might be a disconnect between what nationalist parties were advocating and the actual needs of their constituents, raising urgent questions about the framework of the ongoing Peace Process in the 1990s.