Coffee House Shots: is Britain becoming more sectarian?

Immigration returned to the headlines over the past week after the High Court granted an injunction forcing the removal of migrants from a hotel in Essex – a ruling that could have wider implications for similar cases across the country. At the same time, the sight of Union Jacks and St George’s Crosses appearing in towns and cities has sparked a debate over whether flag-flying is a symbol of patriotism or a sign of growing division.

On this podcast, originally recorded for Saturday's Coffee House Shots, Lucy Dunn is joined by Lord Hannan and trade unionist Paul Embery to ask: what kind of country is Britain becoming? Paul argues that rapid cultural change, combined with economic decline, has left many people feeling disoriented and neglected. Dan Hannan warns that national symbols once seen as unifying risk becoming sectarian markers, echoing Northern Ireland’s politics of identity.

They debate the failures of integration policy to the dangers of what Embery calls ‘soft Lebanonisation’ – a creeping communalism in which people retreat into their own tribes. The political class have been slow to listen, leaving space for rising resentment over immigration and national identity. So, why is Britain so uncertain of its own identity? 

Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.

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