This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-18344832#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 5 Version 6
Ed Miliband: Labour 'too reluctant' to talk about English national identity Ed Miliband talks up England but rejects English Parliament
(about 3 hours later)
  
Ed Miliband says Labour has been "too reluctant" to talk about Englishness and the issue of national identity should not be a "closed book". Labour should not be afraid to talk about England's national identity, Ed Miliband has said, but he rejected calls for an English Parliament.
In a speech in London, the Labour leader argued that his party had been too "nervous" to talk about what it meant to be English, and celebrate it. The Labour leader said "Englishness" had been overlooked in the debate about Scottish independence.
Expressing national identity should strengthen the case for the United Kingdom not undermine it, he argued. Expressing national identity should strengthen the case for the UK not undermine it, he argued.
But he rejected calls for an English Parliament as too "simplistic". His speech was dismissed by Plaid Cymru as "vacuous" and English Parliament campaigners said it was "disingenuous".
The excitement around the recent Diamond Jubilee celebrations and the Olympic Games later this summer meant it was a good time to "reflect on who we are as a country", the Labour leader said. In his most direct attempt since becoming opposition leader to address the future of the UK - and drawing heavily on his own family history - Mr Miliband said those seeking to break up the Union were offering a "false choice" and a "narrow view" of national identity.
In his most direct attempt since becoming opposition leader to address the future of the UK - and drawing heavily on his own family history - Mr Miliband said those seeking to break up the union were offering a "false choice" and a "narrow view" of national identity. Describing himself as the son of a Jewish refugee, who grew up in London but spent time in Yorkshire and is an MP there, Mr Miliband said Britain should be a country "where it is always possible to have more than one identity". People should not have to choose between being British, English, Scottish or Welsh, he said.
'Multiple allegiances' Jeremy Clarkson
Describing himself as the son of a Jewish refugee, who grew up in London but spent time in Yorkshire and is an MP there, Mr Miliband said Britain should be a country "where it always possible to have more than one identity" and people should not have to choose between being British, English, Scottish or Welsh. The Cross of St George had been reclaimed from the BNP, he said, and he "applauds" people who flew it, adding: "Now more than ever, as we make the case for the United Kingdom throughout the United Kingdom, we must talk about England."
He also took a swipe at Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, who said in a recent newspaper column that breaking up the Union "would be as sad as waving goodbye to a much loved, if slightly violent, family pet".
Mr Miliband's speech is designed both as a defence of the Union and a message to his own party.Mr Miliband's speech is designed both as a defence of the Union and a message to his own party.
He hopes that, by encouraging English voters to be more confident and relaxed about expressing their culture and identity, he will engage them in the debate about the future of the UK.He hopes that, by encouraging English voters to be more confident and relaxed about expressing their culture and identity, he will engage them in the debate about the future of the UK.
He is concerned that indifference among English voters about valuing the Union may encourage Scots to vote for independence.He is concerned that indifference among English voters about valuing the Union may encourage Scots to vote for independence.
But his speech is also designed as a deliberate contrast to Gordon Brown's emphasis on 'Britishness'.But his speech is also designed as a deliberate contrast to Gordon Brown's emphasis on 'Britishness'.
For too long, Mr Miliband believes, Labour has been reluctant to talk about England.For too long, Mr Miliband believes, Labour has been reluctant to talk about England.
The party has been happy to stress its Welsh and Scottish roots while being unwilling to celebrate its English working class traditions and history.The party has been happy to stress its Welsh and Scottish roots while being unwilling to celebrate its English working class traditions and history.
But Mr Miliband rejects the idea of an English Parliament - he is calling for a change in attitudes, not the Constitution.But Mr Miliband rejects the idea of an English Parliament - he is calling for a change in attitudes, not the Constitution.
But he said "multiple allegiances" raised serious questions about national identity and he acknowledged that Labour had shied away from trying to articulate a vision of Englishness in recent times.
"We in the Labour Party have been too reluctant to talk about England in recent years. We have concentrated on shaping a new politics for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland," he said.
"But some people in England felt Labour's attention had turned away - that something was holding us back from celebrating England too. That we were too nervous to talk of English pride and English character, connecting it to the kind of nationalism that had left us ill at ease."
Mr Miliband claimed symbols of national identity such as the Union flag and the flag of St George had been "reclaimed" from extremists in recent decades - but suggested the left in British politics had tended to neglect the issue of the English national identity.
"For too long, people have believed that to express English identity is to undermine the union. At the same time, we have rightly helped express Scottish identity within the union. This does not make sense. You can be proudly Scottish and British and you can be proudly English and British as I am.
"Now more than ever, as we make the case for the United Kingdom throughout the United Kingdom, we must talk about England."
He also took a swipe at Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, who said in a recent newspaper column that breaking up the Union "would be as sad as waving goodbye to a much loved, if slightly violent, family pet".
Mr Miliband said: "In Scotland, the narrow nationalists of the SNP pose a false choice. They ask: are you Scottish or British? I say you can be both.Mr Miliband said: "In Scotland, the narrow nationalists of the SNP pose a false choice. They ask: are you Scottish or British? I say you can be both.
"And here in England there are people like Jeremy Clarkson who shrug their shoulders at the prospect of the break-up of the Union."And here in England there are people like Jeremy Clarkson who shrug their shoulders at the prospect of the break-up of the Union.
"A narrow view of identity would mean concern for the young unemployed in Scotland does not reach Newcastle or that we in England would care less for the pensioner in Edinburgh. What a deeply pessimistic vision."A narrow view of identity would mean concern for the young unemployed in Scotland does not reach Newcastle or that we in England would care less for the pensioner in Edinburgh. What a deeply pessimistic vision.
"It's a mistake wherever you find it. Having to say: Scottish or British, Welsh or British, English or British. I don't accept any of that. It's always a false choice.""It's a mistake wherever you find it. Having to say: Scottish or British, Welsh or British, English or British. I don't accept any of that. It's always a false choice."
Far right Mr Miliband acknowledged the influence on his thinking of his new policy chief Jon Cruddas, the Dagenham and Rainham MP who was at the forefront of a campaign to beat the BNP in East London and has called on Labour to reconnect with its English working class roots.
Mr Miliband recently appointed Dagenham and Rainham MP Jon Cruddas, who was heavily involved in Labour's campaign to defeat the BNP in the East End of London and has called for an English national anthem, as his policy chief. But instead of setting up an English Parliament, which would involve "more politicians", extra powers should be devolved to English local authorities, argued the Labour leader.
Mr Cruddas has argued that Labour needs to reclaim English patriotism from the far right and Mr Miliband praised his efforts to rediscover Labour's English working class roots. Quizzed afterwards about why he did not support an English Parliament, Mr Miliband said: "I don't detect the demand that there was in Scotland, for a Scottish Parliament, in England. I don't feel that. I feel like people want an appreciation and a recognition of English identity."
But the Labour leader rejected calls for an English Parliament, to mirror assemblies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, a key demand of parties such as the UK Independence Party and the English Democrats. 'Empty words'
He said: "I don't detect a longing for more politicians among the people of England, or among the people of the rest of the United Kingdom. An ICM opinion poll for the Daily Telegraph in January suggested 40% of Scots backed independence, while 49% of English people favoured an English Parliament.
"For me, it's not about an English Parliament or an English Assembly. The English people don't yearn for simplistic constitutional symmetry. Our minds don't work in spreadsheets, just like our streets don't follow grids." English voters - who would not get a vote in a referendum - were also more keen on Scottish independence than Scots, with 43% supporting full independence.
He spoke instead of the need to continue devolving powers to English local authorities and away from London. Peter Davies, mayor of Doncaster, who campaigns for an English Parliament and counts Mr Miliband among his local MPs, said Labour had already broken up the United Kingdom and it was "unfair" that people living in England had to "subsidise" those in Scotland and Wales.
"It is not just Jeremy Clarkson who has shrugged his shoulders at the break up of the Union, it has been the Labour Party for the past 20 years, and the entire political elite," said Mr Davies, who is a member of the English Democrats.
He accused Mr Miliband of being "disingenuous" and said the real reason he opposed an English Parliament was that the "Labour Party would not be able to control it".
Welsh nationalists Plaid Cymru, which also backs an English Parliament, branded Mr Miliband's speech "vacuous and lacking in substance".
Elfyn Llwyd, the party's leader at Westminster, said: "The people of England will surely be hoping for something better than the Labour leader's empty words."
Supporters of Scottish independence, led by First Minister Alex Salmond, launched their campaign last month for a yes vote in a referendum due in 2014, saying Scotland would be "greener, fairer and more prosperous" as a result.Supporters of Scottish independence, led by First Minister Alex Salmond, launched their campaign last month for a yes vote in a referendum due in 2014, saying Scotland would be "greener, fairer and more prosperous" as a result.
Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats all oppose such a move, saying the UK will always be stronger as the sum of its constituent parts. Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats all oppose such a move, saying the UK will always be stronger as the sum of its constituent parts. The three main parties also reject a separate English Parliament.
Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to campaign strongly for Scotland to stay within the union. In a speech last year, he was criticised for calling for an end to "state multiculturalism" and arguing the UK needed a stronger national identity to stop people turning to extremism.Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed to campaign strongly for Scotland to stay within the union. In a speech last year, he was criticised for calling for an end to "state multiculturalism" and arguing the UK needed a stronger national identity to stop people turning to extremism.