Published July 1st, 2006 by Future Atlas
UK: driver — English nationalism
The CSM reports that English nationalism — identification with the nation of England rather than the larger United Kingdom — is growing, albeit on a small scale.
English nationalism responds to an anomaly:
England is essentially Europe’s largest stateless nation – 50 million people with no parliament and few national emblems. While much has been done to help minorities in Britain express their cultures, the English have largely felt awkward celebrating theirs.
As the Scots and Welsh have regained power within the UK, English interest in self-determination is growing:
A recent survey found that 23 percent of people wanted a separate parliament for England and 43 percent believed only English MPs should be allowed to vote on English issues in parliament.
English nationalism could serve as a secondary driver of the dissolution of the United Kingdom as a unitary state, to be replaced by more loosely associated nation-states within the European Union.