Union flags ahoy
At Gordon Brown’s instigation, Union flags are fluttering all over Westminster and Whitehall. It is to define our Britishness. It is curiously self-conscious. Britishness is not so much about the impact of the extraordinary history of these islands, or our historic adventures abroad, but about openness and tolerance it would seem.
But fairness is also supposedly a distinguishing British characteristic. The fact is that there are parts of the United Kingdom doing very well out of the Exchequer – namely Scotland. My constituents see our Scottish compatriots getting 40% more per head in public spending. Ask any doctor who moves south of the border.
Yet we are told by Jack Straw that even alluding to the Barnett formula, which now so favours the Scots, gets us into “dangerous territory”. It is not clear to my constituents where fairness comes into this. It may have more to do with all those Scottish MPs, like the Prime Minister. They can set down policies for us; we cannot do the same for them.
I think as we watch those fluttering flags, we are entitled to make this point.