Identity parade

IN 1924, speaking on St George’s Day, the then prime minister, Stanley Baldwin, gave thanks that for once he could refer to England “without some fellow at the back of the room shouting out: ‘Britain!’” Even then, the tendency of the English to forget the other nations of the United Kingdom irritated the politically correct.

The distinction between Britain and England continues to confuse tourists; the natives furrow their brows, too. Filling in their census forms in 2011, some 60% of people in England gave their national identity as “English” only, whereas 19% gave it as “British” only. (The remainder were from another part of Britain, foreign nationals or claimed multiple national identities.) But, as data released on May 16th showed, there is great variation. Whether a person considers himself English first or British first is a powerful predictor of class, race and political persuasion.

Blacks and Asians are far more likely to consider themselves British: just 8% of ethnic Bangladeshis in England identify straightforwardly as English, for example. The old are more likely to describe themselves as English than the young. And among white Britons there is a geographical divide. In central London and other wealthy places, Britishness is popular: just 57.5% of white Britons in Cambridge call themselves English. In poorer spots along the Thames Estuary, in the West Midlands and in many northern cities, Englishness is the default identity (see map).

As Britain and Britishness have become more ethnically diverse, and as Scottish and Welsh nationalists have asserted themselves, many white Britons have turned to Englishness as an alternative identity. A poll by IPPR, a think-tank, finds that people who consider themselves English rather than British tend to be more hostile to immigration and more likely to vote for right-wing parties such as the UK Independence Party. For some, the flag of St George is too closely associated with far-right groups such as the English Defence League.

That repels ethnic minorities and wealthy white liberals. Yet there are reasons for optimism. Mixed-race people are far more likely to claim an English identity: some 46% identified themselves that way in the census. People with mixed black Caribbean and white parentage identify as English almost as often as whites do. And in some places where Englishness in general is more common, such as the West Midlands, ethnic minorities as well as whites are embracing it. That suggests that Englishness is becoming less exclusive.

Some would like that process to speed up. Sunder Katwala, the director of British Future, another think-tank, reckons that the government should do more to create a more civic English identity. Though white Britons are broadly tolerant of other races, a survey in 2008 found that over half would not consider a non-white person to be English even if he was born in England. Still, few question the Englishness of the England football team—which contains several black players. If that bunch of serial losers can unite the nation, developing a few other sources of English pride ought not to be too difficult.

_{Correction: This article originally described the English Democrats as “far-right”. This is inaccurate. They are a nationalist party that campaigns for an English parliament. Sorry. This was corrected on May 30th 2013}