Close X
Sunday, November 10, 2024
ADVT 
International

Is It Goodbye To 'God Save The Queen'? UK Debates New England Anthem

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 13 Jan, 2016 12:25 PM
    LONDON — Will England bid goodbye to "God Save the Queen"?
     
    British lawmakers agreed Wednesday to consider replacing the royalist song that serves as England's anthem at sporting events.
     
    "God Save the Queen" is the national anthem of the United Kingdom — made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland — and is played at the Olympics and other events where the U.K. fields a single team.
     
    At contests where the four areas compete separately, such as the rugby and soccer World Cups, England and Northern Ireland generally use "God Save the Queen," but Scotland and Wales have their own official songs — "Flower of Scotland" and "Land of My Fathers."
     
    Labour Party lawmaker Toby Perkins said adopting an English anthem would "re-establish the idea that the United Kingdom is a union of four separate nations with their own identities."
     
     
    Perkins told the House of Commons that said "Jerusalem," regarded by many as England's unofficial anthem, was the most obvious choice. The song, whose words are by 18th-century poet William Blake, vows to transform an England of "dark satanic mills" into a "green and pleasant land."
     
    Opposing the motion, traditionalist Conservative legislator Jacob Rees-Mogg said an English anthem would divide Britain by encouraging "individual nationalisms."
     
    "What greater pleasure can there be for a true-born Englishman or true-born Englishwoman than to listen to our own national anthem —a national anthem for our whole country, our whole United Kingdom," Rees-Mogg said.
     
    Under Perkins' proposed change, "God Save the Queen" would continue to be sung at British team events. Northern Ireland could either stick with the status quo or choose its own anthem.
     
    Lawmakers agreed to hold a full House of Commons debate in March on Perkins' bill, which calls on the government to consult the public on a new anthem.
     
     
    Perkins said his own canvassing had produced suggestions including "Land Of Hope And Glory," ''There'll Always Be An England" — and even "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" by The Smiths.

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Indian American Community Lauded At Pravasi Bharatiya Divas In US

    Indian American Community Lauded At Pravasi Bharatiya Divas In US
    Opening an event to celebrate the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas at the Indian embassy here on Friday, he also highlighted the importance of the day.

    Indian American Community Lauded At Pravasi Bharatiya Divas In US

    If India Moves A Yard, Pakistan Will Move Even More: Ex-Pakistan Foreing Minister Khurshid Kasuri

    If India Moves A Yard, Pakistan Will Move Even More: Ex-Pakistan Foreing Minister Khurshid Kasuri
    He suggests a give and take between the two resolve outstanding issues. 

    If India Moves A Yard, Pakistan Will Move Even More: Ex-Pakistan Foreing Minister Khurshid Kasuri

    Two Teens Charged In Killing Of Canadian Found Stabbed In Belize: Police

    Two Teens Charged In Killing Of Canadian Found Stabbed In Belize: Police
    Matthiew Klinck — a producer and filmmaker from Quebec — was found stabbed to death after an apparent robbery at his home in Selena Village in Belize on Monday.

    Two Teens Charged In Killing Of Canadian Found Stabbed In Belize: Police

    US Hopes Pakistan, India To Continue Talks

    US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over the phone late on Saturday and expressed the hope that Pakistan and India will continue talks despite the recent attack on an Indian airbase.

    US Hopes Pakistan, India To Continue Talks

    Diaspora Ties Deepened During Nda Rule: Sushma Swaraj

    External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday said India's ties with its diaspora have deepened greatly ever since the NDA government came to power at the centre 19 months ago.

    Diaspora Ties Deepened During Nda Rule: Sushma Swaraj

    Plan To Bring 15,000 Retiring Indian-Origin British Doctors To India

    Plan To Bring 15,000 Retiring Indian-Origin British Doctors To India
    The Global Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (GAPIO) on Saturday said it was planning to bring 15,000 retiring Indian-origin doctors from Britain to provide expertise to short staffed medical institutions in India.

    Plan To Bring 15,000 Retiring Indian-Origin British Doctors To India