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| Are oaths powerful symbols or just empty gestures? Are oaths powerful symbols or just empty gestures? | |
| (about 20 hours later) | |
| Here’s a quick British citizenship test for you. According to Louise Casey’s 18-month review into community cohesion, what should immigrants have to do as soon as they arrive in the UK? a) leave? b) stick the kettle on? Or c) swear an oath of integration with British values and society? | Here’s a quick British citizenship test for you. According to Louise Casey’s 18-month review into community cohesion, what should immigrants have to do as soon as they arrive in the UK? a) leave? b) stick the kettle on? Or c) swear an oath of integration with British values and society? |
| The answer is, of course, c). The Casey review, which attacks previous attempts at social inclusion as “saris, samosas and steel drums for the already well-intentioned”, recommends, among other measures, that migrants recite an “integration oath” as soon as they enter the UK. Currently, migrants are not required to swear an oath of allegiance until they are granted citizenship at a ceremony, but have to take a “Life in the UK” test costing £50 to secure their right to stay. | The answer is, of course, c). The Casey review, which attacks previous attempts at social inclusion as “saris, samosas and steel drums for the already well-intentioned”, recommends, among other measures, that migrants recite an “integration oath” as soon as they enter the UK. Currently, migrants are not required to swear an oath of allegiance until they are granted citizenship at a ceremony, but have to take a “Life in the UK” test costing £50 to secure their right to stay. |
| Note that the Casey review’s proposed integration oath would be for migrants only, and not all British citizens, which you might say misses the point of integration: namely, that it must be a two-way street. And as for what British values actually are, well, that seems to be under review, too. But what is the point of an oath? A powerful symbol? Empty gesture? The showiest kind of nationalism? Here are some more oaths to help you solemnly decide. | Note that the Casey review’s proposed integration oath would be for migrants only, and not all British citizens, which you might say misses the point of integration: namely, that it must be a two-way street. And as for what British values actually are, well, that seems to be under review, too. But what is the point of an oath? A powerful symbol? Empty gesture? The showiest kind of nationalism? Here are some more oaths to help you solemnly decide. |
| Members of parliament | Members of parliament |
| The swearing-in of MPs remains the most time consuming of parliamentary rituals. Two hundred years ago, it involved pledging allegiance to the crown in English on the authorised version of the Bible. Now MPs can swear or affirm in English, Welsh, Gaelic and Cornish, on or ignoring scriptures from the Qur’an to the Hebrew Bible. Some politicians have included prefaces to the oath, from the quietly subversive (Tony Benn: “As a committed republican, under protest, I take the oath required of me by law”) to the downright cheeky (Dennis Skinner: “I solemnly swear that I will bear true and faithful allegiance to the Queen when she pays her income tax”). | The swearing-in of MPs remains the most time consuming of parliamentary rituals. Two hundred years ago, it involved pledging allegiance to the crown in English on the authorised version of the Bible. Now MPs can swear or affirm in English, Welsh, Gaelic and Cornish, on or ignoring scriptures from the Qur’an to the Hebrew Bible. Some politicians have included prefaces to the oath, from the quietly subversive (Tony Benn: “As a committed republican, under protest, I take the oath required of me by law”) to the downright cheeky (Dennis Skinner: “I solemnly swear that I will bear true and faithful allegiance to the Queen when she pays her income tax”). |
| Doctors | Doctors |
| Though many assume members of the medical profession take the Hippocratic oath – named after the Greek physician and philosopher Hippocrates – in fact, they simply agree to abide by the principles of good medical practice as defined by the General Medical Council. The classical Hippocratic oath, which begins: “I swear by Apollo the healer, by Asclepius, by Hygieia, by Panacea, and by all the gods and goddesses ... that I will carry out, according to my ability and judgment, this oath and this indenture,” has been interpreted over centuries. There is still no single modern accepted version. | Though many assume members of the medical profession take the Hippocratic oath – named after the Greek physician and philosopher Hippocrates – in fact, they simply agree to abide by the principles of good medical practice as defined by the General Medical Council. The classical Hippocratic oath, which begins: “I swear by Apollo the healer, by Asclepius, by Hygieia, by Panacea, and by all the gods and goddesses ... that I will carry out, according to my ability and judgment, this oath and this indenture,” has been interpreted over centuries. There is still no single modern accepted version. |
| Armed forces | Armed forces |
| Royal Navy and Royal Marines recruits don’t have to swear an oath of allegiance because they were established by the sovereign’s prerogative. All other armed forces have to swear to God (or affirm) that: “I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the second, her heirs and successors, and that I will, as in duty bound, honestly and faithfully defend Her Majesty.” | Royal Navy and Royal Marines recruits don’t have to swear an oath of allegiance because they were established by the sovereign’s prerogative. All other armed forces have to swear to God (or affirm) that: “I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the second, her heirs and successors, and that I will, as in duty bound, honestly and faithfully defend Her Majesty.” |
| Schoolchildren | Schoolchildren |
| In 2008 a report commissioned by Gordon Brown on British citizenship recommended pupils take an oath of allegiance to Queen and country. It never happened, but then neither did the touted national “Britishness” holiday. Instead, we got Brexit, which means permanent holidays in Britain because we can’t afford to leave. | In 2008 a report commissioned by Gordon Brown on British citizenship recommended pupils take an oath of allegiance to Queen and country. It never happened, but then neither did the touted national “Britishness” holiday. Instead, we got Brexit, which means permanent holidays in Britain because we can’t afford to leave. |