Write-Place

I had a feeling that as soon as I wrote the phrase “…I was incredibly proud to be British” on this blog , the other day, that within a short space of time I would have reason to question my views. And yes, I already have these reasons. I read that a 16 year old student from Qatar is beaten and left for dead by a drunken mob, which police have confirmed was a racist attack. Mohammed Al-Majed, died from his injuries two days later. He was on a visit to Britain to learn about it’s culture and traditions. There’s little that can be said about this appalling tragedy which wouldn’t sound patronising to the family. An 18 month old baby boy is critically ill in hospital after his five year old sister accidentally shot him in the head with their father’s air rifle. Do we need to discuss why the air rifle was even in the home? A schizophrenic who was locked up indefinitely 10 years ago, for killing Police Constable Nina Mackay, is back on the streets in preparation for his permanent release. El...

I must admit, I have been rather cynical recently, of the government’s rules and regulations on immigration and gaining British Citizenship. (What you - cynical? I hear you say with more than a little irony) The“British Citizenship Test” which began in 2005 – the year my husband and step family came to Britain to live – didn’t inspire me with much confidence of what the government thinks constitutes “being British”. But if you want the passport, then you have to read the “Life in the UK” book then take the test on society, history and culture. A 45 minute test, which costs you £34, of questions that many people born and educated in Britain struggle to answer, doesn’t seem to be the best way to integrate people from different cultures into a culture that is difficult to define – but there you go, that’s what you have to do. Almost 60m people live in the UK. By what factor do the native-born English outnumber their Scots or Welsh neighbours? A) 9 to 1? B)7 to 1? C) 6 to 1? Blowed if I ...