/taxonomy/term/7994 The taxonomy view with a depth of 0. en /whittles-london-peter-whittle-british-citizenship-monarchy <p><b>Author:</b>Peter Whittle</p><br />Citizenship tests in Streatham: Should there be something more stirring about British citizenship? (GRGS/Flickr)<br /><br />Last month, I attended my first citizenship ceremony. Amazingly, they've now been going for more than 10 years, having been brought in by the Labour government during one of its spasms of anxiety about Britishness, or rather of guilt about its apparent lack of concern. There was much criticism of the whole idea at the time; Tory oldsters saw it as inherently un-British and silly, while Guardianistas sneered, much as they do when it comes to anything to do with nationality, and British nationality in particular. But the idea survived, and they are now taken for granted as a feature of the civic landscape.<br /><p><a href="/whittles-london-peter-whittle-british-citizenship-monarchy"><span>read more</span></a></p> /whittles-london-peter-whittle-british-citizenship-monarchy#comments Citizenship Immigration Modern Life Monarchy Whittle&#039;s London Tue, 24 Feb 2015 15:36:41 +0000 Oliver Wiseman 5941 at http://standpointmag.co.uk