Let’s be patriotic!

Roses and daffodils

Today is St David’s Day. As a proud Welshman sporting a daffodil on my lapel, I plan to attend a St David’s Day service in Westminster, and throughout the ‘Land of my Fathers’ there will be innumerable events celebrating the history and culture of Wales. In Scotland on 30 November, St Andrew’s Day will be celebrated with even greater enthusiasm. And yet, in contrast, in England St George’s Day celebrations will be decidedly low key.

There are complex historic reasons for this differential patriotism, but a central reason lies in the fact that ‘England’ has been, and still is, the central ‘nation ‘ of a ‘union state’, ie a British state which has been constructed through a series of ‘unions’ with Wales, Ireland and Scotland. With England constituting 85 per cent of the population of the UK, for many ‘England’ has become synonymous with ‘Britain’.

But there are clear indications that the sense of identity of English people is changing. In part because of the development of Welsh and especially Scottish identity in recent years, reinforced by the Welsh assembly and the Scottish parliament, increasing numbers of English people are seeing themselves primarily as ‘English’ rather than British. Recently, the IPPR published a report on Englishness which graphically described the emergence of such an English identity. Perhaps surprisingly, the report highlighted that this growing sense of Englishness transcended the traditional north/south English divide.

The question for the Labour party is how best to respond to ‘Englishness’. I believe that Labour ought to identify itself firmly with patriotic sentiment. Let us say loudly and clearly that to love one’s country and the values it is built upon is entirely positive. For too long the xenophobes have hijacked the flag of St George; it is surely high time for the people of England to reclaim the symbol of their country as a representation of the universal values which most people uphold.

Here there are lessons to be learnt from Wales. At one time many people in Wales used to be uncomfortable with too close an association with Welsh patriotism. Things are very different now. Most Welsh people warmly embrace Welsh identity and Wales’ national symbols but, at the same time, firmly reject crude Welsh nationalism. In Wales the Labour party is now ‘Welsh Labour’ and indeed the close relationship between Welsh people’s identity and the Labour party is one of the reasons why ‘Welsh Labour’ is increasingly seen as the ‘natural party of Wales’. Recent opinion polls put Welsh Labour at 50 per cent.

‘Identity politics’ is seldom easy, and the dividing line between patriotism and nationalism must always be maintained. But in an age when traditional ‘class politics’ has lost much of its resonance and when insecurity is a hallmark of modern life, I believe that it is important for Labour to examine carefully how best it can align itself as a party with people’s developing sense of identity.

—————————————————————————————

Wayne David is MP for Caerphilly and shadow minister for political and constitutional reform

—————————————————————————————

Photo: Keith Laverack

Print Friendly

, , , , ,
  • Flotom

    Its a bit much for a British Welsh Politician to be pontificating to the English about how their English Identity should evolve and develop.

    But then carry on the English are increasingly disgruntled by British Politicians from the other Home Nations interfering in England’s concerns and no doubt you will only increase the resentment.

  • Geoff, England

    Mr David, I fear that you and Frank Field, who made a similar plea to the Labour party in the Liverpool Echo a few days ago, are wasting your breath. The simple fact is that your party hates England and the English people, certainly the white English. They probably hate non-white people who identify themselves as English, too, and 60-odd percent of ethnic minority people in England identify themselves as English, according to a recent poll. Some might be surprised by that, but who am I to argue? Anyway, back to the Labour party. The simple fact is that Anglophobic racism is part of your DNA. You’re a bunch of fascists. Sorry if that offends some peoples sensibilities, but the truth will always prevail in the end.

  • http://www.forengland.org Wyrdtimes

    Not this old nonsense again: ‘For too long the xenophobes have hijacked the flag of St George;’

    British Union of Fascists, National Front, British National Party – all British nationalist xenophobes. The Cross of St George is only associated with the far right by the British political establishment (that fears a free England above all things) and lazy journalists who feel obliged to write something negative about England on St George’s day.

    Wayne David MP for Caerphilly and shadow minister for political and constitutional reform can however help the people of England:

    First as a Welsh MP, unaccountable to the English electorate you can stop voting on English issues. Second, as shadow minister for political and constitutional reform you can start calling for political and national recognition for England in the Union. Third you can call for the establishment of an English Labour party to go along with Welsh Labour and Scottish Labour. Finally you can call for the re-establishment of the English parliament so the English have the same level of representation the UK has given your own constituents.

    But please – stop rolling out this utter nonsense about reclaiming the CofStG – it’s your Union flag that’s always been associated with xenophobes not ours.

  • Alfred the OK

    Loving it. SHOCK: Brit’ politician tells us it’s ‘OK’ to be patriotic! Well WhoopyDo! You’ll be telling us next it’s ‘OK’ to actually become a real democratic country and vote in our own English First Minister and English National legislature just like every other western first world country……. Oh wait, hang on, you’re an MP so you won’t be doing that will you? Expense-claiming turkeys don’t vote for Christmas, do they?

    Doncha just love national democracy? I just wish we in England actually had some…

  • Anonymous

    Wayne, you talk about xenophobia. So let me ask you a question. There is a Scottish Labour and a Welsh Labour Party but no English Labour Party. So do you not think that the Labour party is fearful of the English? Why is there no English Labour Party and why do Labour ministers and MP’s in the House of Commons refer to England as ‘this country’? Why are you so scared to say England?

    ‘in England St George’s Day celebrations will be decidedly low key’. There are plenty of St George’s Day events in England.

  • shaun the brummie

    typical anti english britnat,only love our money.the longer they leave england to fester a sense of grievence,the worse it will be for the rest of the former uk.we will most certainly have some form of deceltification and removal of all symbols of unionism,culturally,politically and sporting.all of these things cant happen soon enough.if labour went out and asked the average english person certain question labour would be horrified…but all they do is ask their own intelligentia and guardianista readers.they are seen as traitors by the vast majority of english people and will never be trusted again.the conservatives should drop the unionist from their name and replace it with english.but then again cameron is an anti english anglojock on the make..

  • http://thecornishrepublican.blogspot.com/ cornubian

    Are the Cornish allowed to be patriotic? LibLabCon have done, and still do, their best to stifle our sense of national identity. Anyway our national day will be celebrated across Cornwall and around the world by Cornish decedents and lovers of all things Cornish on the 5th of March St Pirans Day: Use Cornish for Pirantid: http://bit.ly/wDziC8