England, thousands of years of History, achievements unmatched, it’s world legacy for good and bad alive and shaping the world today. England that many love to hate, many love to blame, many want to destroy. People having ill feeling towards England, wishing to erase it, stop its contribution to history (and slowly erase all knowledge of its past contributions) is nothing new. What is new, is the current and present danger of the Coalition currently governing Britain (and therefore England).
Torque contacted Nick Clegg when announced he would be in charge of answering the West Lothian question for the government. The following reply from Nick Clegg’s office.
“We recognise that devolution to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland poses difficult questions for the governance of England within the Union. I think it’s important to be honest about the fact that it is difficult to find an immediate solution. The idea of ‘English votes for English laws’ is extremely complicated to implement – particularly because many laws actually extend to England only in some parts, while covering other parts of the UK in other areas. Given the fact that changes in spending on English services which would be devolved in the rest of the UK directly affect the devolved administration’s budgets, it is also often the case that ‘English’ legislation actually will affect devolved issues outside of England.
We believe that we can only really deal with this question by looking at it as part of the wider political system. We need to do more, first of all, to give more power to people locally in England – so that they, too, have more control over their own affairs rather than being micromanaged from Whitehall. We want to give local communities real power over their health services and policing, through fairly elected local health boards and police authorities – as well as freeing the hands of local councils, removing power from Westminster and Whitehall. Ultimately, we want to move towards a federal United Kingdom – devolving power within England further and thus resolving this question”.
Lets us be perfectly clear. The Coalitions head of the ‘West Lothian Question’ proposes the same solution as Gordon Browns nations and regions. The nations being Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the regions being East Midlands, East, Greater London, North East, North West, South East, South West, West Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber.
When you hear “Ultimately, we want to move towards a federal United Kingdom – devolving power within England further and thus resolving this question.” it is not giving power to England, but bypassing England. Nick Clegg’s preferred solution eliminates the possibility of an English Parliament. There will be no national governance to transfer to an English government. You no longer have a country, you are a region, ruled by an assembly, controlled by a British government which is part controlled by the European Union.
England will have no unified political representation, so it will of course need a thriving present, historical and educational representation if not to disappear into the footnotes of history.
So what do we have ?
Supermarkets that use the national flags of Scotland and Wales but not England to sell goods. English produce is marked with the British flag. Even after campaigning it is hard to get supermarkets to change as they openly say the Celtic fringes will not buy English marked produce.
Charities and organisations operating solely in England refuse to use England in their name, instead they opt for the false and misleading ‘Britain’ identity.
Local authorities and councils ?
Whilst in Scotland “The Saltire should be flown every day from Scottish Government buildings”. How many government buildings or local authorities fly the flag of St.George ? How many celebrate St.Georges day (and the few who do, compare the budget and size to that dedicated to St.Patrick’s day or the annual gay Pride parades).
So who can we look too ? The media ? Well the BBC certainly will not help.
“Reporting the Beijing Olympics, the media, and in particular the BBC, continued to announce medal winners as Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish and British, but not English. In its CEEFAX August 19th 2008 bulletin the BBC described Chris Hoy the triple gold medallist as ‘the Scot’. However, it described Victoria Pendleton the triumphant women’s sprint cyclist Olympic champion from Bedfordshire as ‘British’, not once as English. In the first week of the Games both BBC reporters and BBC CEEFAX described Nicole Cook who took the first gold medal for the British team as Welsh, but Rebecca Adlington who achieved two gold medals in swimming only as ‘British’, never English.’ What is the agenda for denying the identity of England and English achievers?
The presenter of a recent BBC programme called Thomas Tallis and other mediaeval English composers British when they were unequivocally English.”
Will the BBC start referring to athletes as the “South West Olympic gold winner” I doubt it, it will be “British Olympic gold winner”, and the BBC is not alone, as the recent Channel 4 Genius of Britain shows.
These organisations know what many in England refuse to accept. Britishness has been dumped and given up on in Scotland and Wales, the campaigns to preserve it is only happening in England. England is being dismantled, its bones used to support a unionist British political identity that simply has no flesh beyond the halls of Westminster politicians and academics. If England is not recognised now, it is unlikely to be recognized in the future. It will eventually die out, leaving only the past.
So what of the past ?
The devolved nations promote their history in schools and use taxpayers money to promote and fund historical celebrations. Each year Scotland aims to promote itself. Scotland alone had over 400 events to promote, its history, culture and economy. This year Scotland is promoting its food and drink produce. Wales is promoting its history and learning Welsh is mandatory until the age of 16.
Where is the English equivalent ? England has only seen an erosion of our history taught in schools. With the coalitions push for schools to be free from a dictated national curriculum, the teaching of English history will only demise even more over time. If the British government is supposed to be the English government, then why are they not promoting English cultural and historical events or championing English produce ?
Be under no illusions, this coalition government will do whatever it can to keep the Union embers glowing, even if that entails throwing England on the fire.
Tags: devolution in britain, England culture, English history, English parliament, Home rule
