A question of Britishness

The debate that is currently preoccupying the intelligentsia throughout the United Kingdom is the future of ‘Britishness.' A lot of this has to do with providing 21st century immigrants with a sense of national status through swearing allegiance to the flag of their adopted country, a no doubt commendable practice, but one that has unintentionally highlighted the duality problems faced by all indigenous UK citizens. Are they British first, and Scots, English, Welsh and Irish second? Or do they see themselves as primarily representing their ethnicity within the framework of the British Isles? And does it matter?

It is the same dilemma that many of us encounter when we go abroad and have to fill in a visa application. Are we Scottish or are we British? Most Englishmen, I suspect, will write British. Very few Scots are so inclined, not, I hasten to add, because they are any less proud of belonging to the United Kingdom. It is simply because they appear to have a far stronger sense of their ongoing individual cultural identity. They are Scots first and British second.

Although the topic is featuring more in the English media than in its Scottish counterpart, I recently took part in a BBC Panorama television programme in which a group of eight friends, which included the former father of the House of Commons Tam Dalyell, were invited to a dinner party and asked this exact same question. Did we consider ourselves to be British or Scottish?

Only two of those present chose to be...

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• By : Roddy Martine
• In : Roddy Martine's World
• Issue : 40
• Page : 7
• Words : 700