In today’s IPPR research report, there are several intriguing findings including evidence that the increasingly ‘muscular unionism‘ (pinning us down), first adopted by Johnson but increasingly now by Labour, is counter-productive and will weaken the Union in time.
One finding, the above, jumps out. Those in England who identify as British are not at all like those in Scotland, who do so, across a range of attitudes toward the Union. Indeed it is those in England who identify as English who are most like Scottish Unionists and vice versa.
Food for thought there?
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
I can see a whole bundle of trouble for me on twitter from the usual suspects, plus a platter of Scottish unionists joining in, if I dare to share this one. Looks like a fun day ahead. They already angrily dismiss your blogs as fake news so you can be sure you are going in the right direction.
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There is and never was a Union.
The UK state is just England by another name.
Unionism is just a cover story to maintain England’s dominance and control in most of the British Isles.
During the last referendum,the London establishment made it clear that as far as they were concerned,there was no union,just Greater England where Scotland and Ireland were absorbed.
Ireland has,with great difficulty,mostly removed itself from England’s so called Union but Scotland is viewed as a far greater prize by Westminster so it will be even harder to escape their clutches.
Time unionists stopped speaking with forked tounges.
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Sorry,tongues that should be…..too early in the morning for me!
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Interesting piece….especially in the article you linked which stated that “Surveys showed that many voters, even those who would consider themselves staunch union supporters, were open to the idea of Scottish independence and Irish reunification, viewing them as acceptable trade-offs for their preferred Brexit outcome”
One of the “Brexit outcomes” was the UK leaving the EU Horizon initiative when we left the EU….. which now is being reported that they, the UK, will rejoin via what Ursula Von der Leyen states will be “a political agreement on the UK’s participation in Horizon Europe and Copernicus” .which tells us all that for the UK leaving the EU it resulted in the UK no longer being a part of this initiative, which has obviously proven to be a NEGATIVE (one of many) …….or else why on earth would the UK, via Sunak, NOW want to rejoin it, EU Horizon, via a “political agreement on the UK’s participation” going forward?
As to “identity” via nationality…..well I heard that via the Tory party and New New Labour it is tantamount to treason if you, as a Scot, promote you identify as being Scottish NOT British….allegedly (as in JOKE)…LOL (there is also a alternate version of a Stewart Lee Joke on this but his version , via a Taxi driver, is that “you go to jail” if you say “you’re English” these days)….
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I sincerely struggle to understand this – The synopsis on the landing page is almost verbatim what came out of a survey of Tory members way back in the hype of the Brexit pre-screwup :
“Surveys showed that many voters, even those who would consider themselves staunch union supporters, were open to the idea of Scottish independence and Irish reunification, viewing them as acceptable trade-offs for their preferred Brexit outcome.”
The only chaser is
“Additionally, a sense of ‘devo-anxiety’ in England, reflecting enduring dissatisfaction with Scotland’s perceived influence and resource access, is matched by a sense of grievance across the rest of the state about the perceived unfairness of resource allocation.”
which has long been a Tory member stance on both devolution and the “ungrateful recipients” of their generosity.
I suspect the ‘establishment’ are attempting to conjure some common ‘bond’ between the average English and Scots Unionist at a time the ‘establishment’ are fast losing grip over England’s public opinion, with Brexit perceived widely as an unmitigated disaster, and England’s hegemonic politics descending into a corrupt one-party state causing considerable disquiet.
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‘I suspect the ‘establishment’ are attempting to conjure some common ‘bond’ between the average English and Scots Unionist’
I haven’t read the detail but I thinks they’re saying that those who identify as British in Scotland are more like those who identify as English in England – not flattering.
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“not flattering”.
I heard that if you say anything “flattering” in respect to Scotland or related to anything Scottish ……you go to jail….LOL….(to include anything also connected to the SNP)…as by a recommendation from HMG…..so anyone saying “Scotland is a GREAT country” could lead you, like a game of monopoly (in more ways than one), going…straight to jail….and spending time in one of the HMG prison’s down South…..allegedly ( as in obvs a Joke…but somehow seems feasible does it not in today’s CURRENT anti Scottish political climate ?)
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They are attempting to conjure any connection which might distract the majority (and growing) in England (the primary audience) in favour of Scotland holding a referendum, widely perceived as a an early breakdown in democracy.
Add this to all the other aspects which bug the public and which the media/political class blithely ignore, then along comes Kid Starver’s political strategy for Labour…
UK democracy is fast becoming an issue in England…
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