I was recently asked to explain to some students in Indonesia about the British Constitution.
Q. You are English but you are also British?
A. I come from England but am also British
If you come from Wales you are Welsh but also British
If you come from Scotland you are Scottish but also British
All Britons have British Passports, not English, Welsh or Scottish Passports.
Q. What is Britain then?
A. Great Britain consists of England, Wales and Scotland, with Northern Ireland as an addition.
The British Isles consist of mainland Britain (England Wales and Scotland) plus many other islands mostly off Scotland, and the Island of Eire (Ireland) which is a separate country.
Q. I understand there is no Constitution of Britain.. No Government of “Britain”.
A. It is true there is No Written Constitution.
The ‘Government of Britain’ consists of the following:
there is an English Parliament, a Scottish Parliament and a Welsh Assembly and a Northern Ireland Assembly.
Together this makes up the BritishGovernment.. English and Welsh MP’s meet atWestminster. Scottish MP’s attend the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh but can attend Westminster also. The Northern Irish MPs can meet at Westminster but they dont want to attend. They meet at the Northern Ireland Assembly
It is therefore true that there is NO ONE ‘PARLIAMENT’ for the whole of Britain
- What is the UK?
- The UK is the United Kingdom, which consists of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is United under the Queen and Government and unwritten Constitution.
Q, The Queen is Queen of the whole of Britain?
- No she is Queen Of England, but she is Head of State in Britain (England Wales and Scotland and NI).
There is no Queen of Wales or Queen of Scotland.
Q. What about the Prince of Wales?
I draw a deep breath…..
A.The Prince of WALES is the son and heir of the Queen of ENGLAND …. the male heir to the ENGLISH throne always has this title……
I mop my brow and give up trying to explain….it is not just foreigners who find it difficult to understand The British……