What is "Britishness"? Part 4: Partnership and cooperation

Alongside pugnacity, Britain’s history since 1800 has also contained striking examples of partnership and cooperation. The sovereign state of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland formed by the Act of Union in 1800 and the secession of the Irish Free State in 1922, is but the most recent of various combinations of the home nations over the years. This Union has continued to hold together, despite continued nationalistic tendencies in Scotland and Wales and the Irish Troubles, mainly through the creation of devolved parliaments in each of the member nations.

The Good Friday Agreement, signed on Good Friday, 10 April 1998, was a landmark achievement in the Northern Ireland Peace Process, effectively ending the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The Agreement was forged between the British and Irish governments and eight political parties or groupings in Northern Ireland. These represented the main rival unionist/loyalist and nationalist/republican traditions as well as some independent coalitions. One notable exception was the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which left the talks when Sinn Féin and loyalist parties were admitted because republican and loyalist paramilitary weapons had not been decommissioned. The Agreement was the result of a slow and painstaking process through the 1990s, overseen by the British Government, that sought to address issues which had caused conflict in the preceding 30 years. The objective was to establish a new, devolved government for Northern Ireland in which unionists and nationalists would share power. Engagement and compromise was required on all sides. The final Agreement enshrined the commitment to “the mutual respect, the civil rights and the religious liberties of everyone in the community” and, as such, stands as a model framework for the peaceful resolution of conflicts.

An equally remarkable success in the field of British partnership and cooperation is the Commonwealth of Nations, a free association of 54 member states, that developed from the British Empire. The decline of the Empire accelerated in the first half of the 20th century but Britain and former territories chose to maintain ties of friendship and practical cooperation. Under the London Declaration in 1949, the modern Commonwealth was born. Member states have no legal obligations to each other but are connected through their use of the English language, history, economic interests, and shared values of democracy, human rights and rule of law which are enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter and promoted by the quadrennial Commonwealth Games.

Swedish artist Carl Reutersward's Non-Violence sculpture, also known as The Knotted Gun, at the United Nations Headquarters Plaza in New York City. Photo by gary718 at 123RF.

Furthermore, the UK’s involvement in the United Nations as a founding member and one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, is further testimony to our willingness to work with other countries for the greater good. The UK is also a founder member of NATO and has always been an active contributor to the alliance.

All this says something about our view of Britain’s place in the world – we may be a small island nation but we punch above our weight! Britain may no longer rule the waves but we have retained international influence and being seen as a global player is an important part of our national identity. The recent souring of the relationship with our EU partners culminating in Brexit is a notable exception to the rule and has been bitterly divisive in the country. Both Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain, the former decisively so. Little has been done since to appease the voters in these two countries. December’s Trade Agreement with the EU threatens to undermine the hard-won Good Friday Agreement due to the impact on Northern Ireland which threatens to reopen old wounds. The creation of a border in the Irish Sea has weakened the link between Northern Ireland and the rest of Britain and pushed the Province into a closer economic relationship with the Irish Republic and EU single market. Nationalist support is rising in Scotland and should the SNP win a fourth consecutive victory in the Scottish Parliamentary elections in May, it will claim a mandate for a new independence referendum. This would have serious repercussions throughout the Union.

During the pandemic, we have seen the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland taking responsibility and making their own decisions on how the crisis should be managed in their regions. This is how things were intended to operate but there is no no doubt that each of the nations going its own way has exacerbated the political differences and tensions between them rather than their interdependency. Although there remain plenty of compelling reasons for the Union to continue to exist, not least shared history, economic power and global significance, the case for being ‘better together’ seems to be being lost. The Prime Minister who came to power promising to be ‘minister for the Union’ could well be the one who presides over its break-up. This would be a sad day and yet another tragic divorce to add to his growing list of failed relationships.