The Ministry of Justice has commissioned the pollsters MORI to conduct a survey into Britishness. The results will be published on the 25th of March to coincide with a speech on the Politics of National Identity by Michael Wills, Minister of State, Ministry of Justice.
Michael will be making a contribution to the current debate about Britishness by placing the Government’s constitutional renewal programme in the context of an emerging politics of identity. At the seminar Michael will discuss new poll findings published on the day, based on research undertaken by MORI for the Ministry of Justice, about the sense of belonging in Britain.
It was Michael Mills who once said ‘The so-called “English question” is one which does not exist until the Conservative Party asks it, an issue which is not a problem until they try to whip it into one.‘ so I think we know what to expect.
The Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish Questions exist, hence devolution; and so too does the British Question, hence the poll and the Government’s fixation with Britishness. But the English Question? Nah, that’s just a figment of the Tories’ imagination.
I have a second article on the IPPR’s recent reports concerning the Government’s need to address the ‘English Question’ to prevent future backlash on the Our Kingdom blog. I’m afraid that it’s a long read, made even longer because I’m going to direct you to it via this précis on my own blog (which at least summarises the main points that I want to get across to CEP members).
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I’ve given my 2 cents on the IPPR “Where Stands the Union Now?” at http://cepbuckinghamshire.blogspot.com/
Let me know what you think.
March 15th, 2008 at 11:32 am