Do we need or want a 'Britain Day'?

[Gromit]

The Government are proposing that we all celebrate our Britishness on a special day (possibly a bank holiday) to be called Britain Day. Do we need the Government to remind us we are British? Or is this a desperate attempt to hold the (British) Union together?


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6721239.stm

[4getmenot]

If we cant have a st georges day why should we have Britain day

[Leilapups]

Not sure I mind within reason what it is called but yes please if it�s a holiday. In terms of bank holidays we have much less than other countries in Europe.

Desperate attempt to hold Union together - I thought and I might well be wrong, that the likelihood of a break up was unreal because of economic reasons and its just something people like to wish could happen without really thinking through the implications.

[NJOK]

Someone call Lonnie. Quick! He'd hate to be missing this.

I'm all for being proud to be British but is there really a demand for this kind of day? Whenever St George's Day falls on a weekend, it's still largely ignored.

When people sign these petitions calling for a St George's Day bank holiday, they're actually asking for just another bank holiday rather than a day to celebrate being English. People just aren't bothered - and they're not going to be more bothered if the government tells them they should be.

I'd happily have a Britain Day though, but on one of our existing bank holidays. I don't want us to have any more public holidays, in case we start to mimic the US model - loads of public holidays and, as a result, employers only give their staff a week or two of annual leave (no wonder none of them take holidays abroad).

I like to choose when I take time off, thanks.

[bazwillrun]

bit ironic really, the government that has done more to destroy our identity than any other in living memory is also now talking about earning points to gain citizenship, bit late now ,what about all the millions already here that flooded in fron africa, asia w.indies etc in the past 35 years

[Leilapups]

Oh great another response that the country is destroyed by immigration. bazwillrum in your opinion not mine. I understand that in this country there has always been immigration. Originally some of the people out of Africa moved up through Europe and came here, then however many thousand years later, we had the Celts, the Saxons, the Normans the Huguenots, sorry should have fitted in the Vikings before that Jews in middle ages, Polish after the Second world war, the 1950s saw the welcome of people from W Indies and Indian sub continent to do all the jobs we needed. Recently the last 35 years - what has been so devastating that I and others have missed?

[mrrobbo15]

i think we shud have st georges day as a bank holiday.......i just hope if a 'britain day' appears, it does so in the summer and not october time that was banded about.....what about the first monday in september ?

[stokeace]

it wont happen the muslims will make sure of that if they object to christmas what chance has this got of getting off the ground?slim to none existant id say...............

[Lonnie]

Okay NJOK, i'm here, but have nothing to add, i'll leave you to hog the limelight on this one.

[ruby27]

Oh come on Lonnie
I don't think NJOK is trying to steal the show, to be honest this is a subject, British or English, Welsh etc that you have strong views about and have posted on before. It seems reasonable that your views are sought
By way I think you should be pleased that people remember who you are and your views. Obscurity seems a worse fate
ps what happend to your post on do gooders, where did AB move it too? Seemed to be in the correct topic.

[Gromit]

I confess to being a bit sceptical about 'special days'. It doesn't take Feb 14th for me to tell my love one I love her. It doesn't take mothers' day and fathers' day to make me appreciate my parents, and it won't take a wet bank holiday to make me acknowledge my Britishness.

[Lonnie]

Hi Gromit,
Okay, after Ruby's reply, i'll post my view on a Britain Day,
Its something that Gordon Brown has been working towards for some time,
Obviously, when he becomes PM, its PM of Britain and the United Kingdom, this Island of ours will always be Britain, and personally, I have no problem with a Britain Day.

My problem is with the forthcoming breakup of the UK, but i've said enough on that, and not for this thread.

[Joe_the_Lion]

We have a British month every year. Its called Ramadam!!!

[reinganum]

Firstly, Leilapups, sorry, but you have fallen into the trap of thinking we have fewer holidays than Europe. Which European country is that? They all have different numbers of holidays, though one or two are particularly generous. Some have fewer than we do.

The real point I'm making is that their holidays are often tied to dates, and if that date falls at a weekend they usually 'lose' it. Our hols are always on Mondays (except Christmas and New Year).

Now, on to whether we need a British Day. In a word, no. The key quality of the British is that we don't make a fuss about this sort of thing; we just quietly get on with it (football supporters excepted).

I think NJOK is absolutely spot on, although I think the 'day' would actually be more effective if it were an ordinary working day (and, perhaps more to the point) an ordinary school day.