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The concept of "Britishness" appears to be losing its appeal in England. A recent YouGov poll has discovered that more and more people in England are identifying themselves as English rather than British. The study found that the number of people in England who would now describe themselves as English rather than British rose to 63 per cent, as opposed to 41 per cent in 2008. The YouGov poll also discovered that just 20 per cent of the UK population preferred a British identity to any other, down from 42 per cent three years ago. The poll, taken last month, appears to show that English nationalism is on the rise at the same time as Scottish nationalism is the predominant force in politics north of the border. The findings were commented on by campaigners for a separate English Parliament as further evidence that there was now a major social shift developing across the country. And John Curtice, professor of politics at Strathclyde University, said that a weakening of "Britishness" in England could have massive repercussions for the future of the Union. He said: "Adherence to a common sense of 'Britishness' is often thought to be a vital part of the emotional glue that helps keep the Union together. That glue has long since lost much of its strength in Scotland. If it has now been eroded in England too, the long term prospects for the Union would seem rather bleak indeed." The SNP said that the figures showed there was a desire for a new "equal relationship" between Scotland and England, with the nations standing on their own. The figures in the new YouGov poll on English and British identity are a marked change on previous polling undertaken in recent years. Of 1,700 adults around Britain, 2 per cent said they were "mainly" European, 19 per cent said British, 1 per cent said Irish, 5 per cent Welsh, 8 per cent Scottish and 63 per cent said English. In 2008, asked which best described how people felt about themselves, 42 per cent said British, 1 per cent said Irish, 4 per cent Welsh, 8 per cent Scottish and 41 per cent said English. The concept of "Britishness" appears to be losing its appeal in England. A recent YouGov poll has discovered that more and more people in England are identifying themselves as English rather than British.The new poll, published in this month's Prospect magazine, was carried out as part of a wider study on British attitudes to Europe. Eddie Bone of the Campaign for an English Parliament said: "People may not understand the Barnett Formula (which provides the block funding grant to Scotland), but they understand the issue of prescription charges, elderly care, NHS cuts and particularly tuition fees. There is a real feeling among young people in England now that they are being treated very badly. " He added: "What is coming out is that more and more people identify themselves as English and that they are subsidising the rest of the UK."
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Britishness Losing it's Appeal in England
Written by Administrator
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all i seem to be hearing these days is anti english propaganda from the other home nations,
and the rights they have and want, well what about us english.
I am not a racist and don,t hate the other home nations but i am english not british and i think we should also be given the vote on independence.
I am now a suppoter of the ENGLISH DEMOCRATES we need a voice to speak out for all us english people,
I am English and proud and not afraid to show it.