The Brittleness of Britishness

The UK's immigration policy has always been viewed as one of the most open in Europe and possibly worldwide. Since 1997, the Labour government has adopted a relaxed immigration policy, swelling the immigrant population in the UK by 1.5 million people since the Labour government came into power in 97'.

While the UK was praised for such open policies, there has been a recent realization that being British, or becoming British is not as easy as sitting for a 4 O'clock Tea and humming along to God Save the Queen. According to the Daily Express, Britain's open immigration policy has done much to fuel divisiveness among Britain's ethnic populations and is fuelling chronic divisions that were "bubbling under the surface" of British society.

As discussed in the LSE Discussion Paper by Manning and Roy: Culture Clash or Culture Club: The Identity and Attitudes of Immigrants in Britain, with the new member states of the EU producing a flood of new immigrants from East and Central Europe towards Britain's major cities and traditional immigration from former colonies and neighboring countries in the region, there has been a not only a flood of new residents to the UK, but a very culturally and economically diverse challenge in its wake.

Since the London bombing, British society was forced to reconsider its position on what it is to be British, as it was evident in the aftermath of the attacks that being born in Britain and being raised in Britain may not be enough to have someone "feel" British. The idea of "British Values" were reconsidered by many academics and journalists and in communities across the UK when the news was leaked that those who attacked London's Tube system were born and raised in England itself.

British values have been challenged and moved back and forth since that time. Muslim clerics entering and residing in the UK were often made subjects of debate, as it was felt by some in British society that words against Britain were enough to expel certain clerics from entering the country. Ironically, while Free Speech was considered a right of many clerics to use freely, some others were expelled outright although it was never clear where those rights end or begin.

Recently in Britain, the University and College Union in the UK again challenged Freedom of Speech in the attempted boycott of Israel. While the UK government will likely legally challenge the boycott, there has been much debate surrounding the freedom of Israeli or pro-Israel academics to voice their research and point of view within the UK University system and in British society in general.

When PM Blair departs and British soldiers leave Iraq, the debate on who is British is not likely to subside. The UK still remains a hub for individuals from around the world to work, live and study. The question of culture however seems to be changing, for better or for worse, into a case of origin vs. citizenship. A possible future could become similar as seen in the next article on Canada. The idea of being a citizen as a motive for legal status as opposed to adopting a culture and society may be the post-modern result of a cultural debate which has no real conclusion. In the end, what it is to be British may depend on the legal papers and rights you possess as opposed to historical ties in the land in which you currently live.