Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis has expressed his surprise at comments from Irish Tanaiste Leo Varadkar that a united Ireland could happen in his lifetime. Lewis also suggested in the House of Commons that the comments could be explained because of the success of Sinn Fein in opinion polls in the Republic. Varadkar, the deputy prime minister of Northern Ireland, said during Fine Gael’s annual conference on Tuesday that Irish reunification should be the party’s “mission,” and he called for an increase in engagement with communities in Northern Ireland. Varadkar said the “tectonic plates were shifting” in the region and called for his party to establish a branch across the border. He said: “It means the unification of the people of our island as well as [the] territory of Ireland and it is a legitimate political aspiration. We should be proud to say that unification is something we aspire to. …