The United Kingdom is at present made up of a multicultural society. An entry in Wikipedia informs: The United Kingdom is an ethnically diverse society. In 2011, 8 million people in the UK were from an ethnic minority background of which 4.3 million are Asian or British Asian, 1.9 million are Black or Black British and 1.2 million are of Mixed ethnicity. The foreign-born population increased from about 5.3 million in 2004 to nearly 9.3 million in 2018 or 14% of the total population.
That seems to indicate that between 2004 and 2018 there was a 75% increase in that foreign born population, and assuming a similar percentage increase over the past 3 years, one could expect that there are now some 10.4 million currently residing in the United Kingdom. That would now be slightly over 14% of the current total population. These are people from some 61 different countries throughout the world. Here is a chart and map indicated the levels of that population by country:
In the United Kingdom, apart from English, there are six main regional languages, Scots, Ulster-Scots, Welsh, Cornish, Irish and Scottish Gaelic. Within that 14 plus percent of foreign citizens, there may be some 60 other languages regularly used throughout the British Isles. As to religion, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Jews and Buddhist seem to be the favoured stated religions from the 2011 census. There are clearly other religious beliefs in the mix and jist under 33% left the question blank or stated specifically no religion, which means some 67% of the population expressed a religious preference of some kind.
So, although the majority profess to be white (86%) and Christian (59%) there is a pretty lively mix of ethnicities and beliefs to classify the United Kingdom as a very multicultural society. Therefore, in order to properly function as an independent sovereign state, it must blend together every part of its multicultural population with the existing state of affairs which has developed since its foundations were established some 1000 plus years ago and has been evolving ever since into its current parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
The problem is, that, although the historical record is clear Britain has always been a multicultural society of sorts, the white Christian majority have held sway for so long that the multicultural or foreign element has had considerable difficulty in establishing itself and making its influence take effect. It is only recently, in the last 75 years or so, starting to find its feet; nonetheless, as against those 1000 years of history, it seems of little consequence.
Indeed, in examining the current Government front bench, and the Opposition’s shadow bench, out of some 200 ministerial jobs only 6 or 7 Conservatives are of Asian or African origins and it is the same for their shadow Labour counterparts. That is just 3%. In order to level up, there should be at least 28 in number, and that only amounts to 4% of members of Parliament. There are 67 serving members of parliament from ethnic minorities - 42 are Labour, 22 Conservative, 2 Liberal Democrats and 1 Scottish National Party. That is 10.3% of the membership.
One would have thought, given the high profile of that 10.3%, which has clearly attracted a large number of voters to get elected, that the problem of bigotry and prejudice, both racial and religious, would be on the wane. Not a bit of it. Incidents of racism and religious intolerance continue to be reported. It is an everyday occurrence.
It is not helped by the likes of Ms Patel whose anti-immigration stance is surprising, given her parents were immigrants to the UK from Uganda in the 1960s. Indeed, with her family’s history of travel and emigration one would have thought she would have a more flexible approach. She has, however, aligned herself to the right of the conservative party and taken a separatist isolationist position. She is very much the corporate PR poster girl in the current guise of public servant. She is intolerant, a fact that has been well established by her record in public office and the amount of compensation that has been paid to victims of her intolerance, paid in settlements to keep her from being too closely examined before tribunals and courts. She is manifestly unfit to hold her position in government. What has she got on Boris Johnson?
Similarly, one is nonplussed by her political ally Kwasi Kwarteng, whose parents immigrated to the UK from Ghana, also in the 1960’s. They both co-authored along with Dominic Raab, Chris Skidmore and Elizabeth Truss Britannia Unchained.
The book asserts that the UK has a "bloated state, high taxes and excessive regulation". It then says: “The British are among the worst idlers in the world. We work among the lowest hours, we retire early and our productivity is poor. Whereas Indian children aspire to be doctors or businessmen, the British are more interested in football and pop music."
It goes on to claim the UK should “stop indulging in irrelevant debates about sharing the pie between manufacturing and services, the north and the south, women and men”.
These are the people that are telling the British public they are all about levelling up.
How on earth has the electorate seen fit to elect these people to government? They are ill suited, unfit and incompetent to hold their jobs. Dominic Raab has shown himself to be just what he claims the British worker to be, an idler with low productivity. His being on holiday at crucial foreign office moments is on record. Just what does he have on Boris Johnson to be Deputy Prime Minister?
What have they all got on Boris Johnson?
In effect, we not only have a multicultural society, but a multi dysfunctional society.
I seem to complain a lot about our lot; however, I am coming to the view, that, rather like the Italians, the British public seem to be getting along without a government. We are quite happy muddling along, queuing for jabs, sometimes masking up, going around and about, eating and drinking, working on line, shopping on line, zooming away, carrying on regardless, but perhaps not paying enough attention when we go to the polling booth.
What sort of government is in place does matter. There are a number of citizens who cannot carry on regardless. Taking a superior and arrogant hard line against the general public seems to be a staple attitude of those in the government. We have seen video evidence of the crass behaviour at No: 10. Resignations or dismissals of a few unelected advisors is not fixing the problem. Those at the top must start behaving like the public servants they are holding themselves out to be. They are clearly incapable of doing so. They should all, each and every one, resign or shape up. Get rid of the clown and his acolytes.
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