Tory MP calls for children to sing God Save the Queen in school assembly every week
A Tory MP has called for children to sing God Save the Queen in school assembly, at least once a week.
Andrew Rosindell, who represents the constituency of Romford, argued that the musical tribute to the British monarch, which is also the anthem for England’s sports teams “represents literally everybody”.
The Conservative politician made the suggestion during in interview with Good Morning Britain on ITV.
He said that “young people are patriotic” and that “our country needs unity and needs patriotism”.
Rosindell also suggested that singing God Save the Queen is “cool” and that the BBC stopped broadcasting the song every day because it is “PC”.
He was invited on the show to discuss his suggestion in the House of Commons, that public broadcasters, that include the likes of the BBC, Channel 4 and S4C , should play God Save the Queen at the end of each day.
Nadine Dorries, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, who controls the budget as well as the regulation of S4C, described his question on the subject as a “fantastic” one.
During the interview on Good Morning Britain, Rosindell said: “Absolutely we should be proud of our country and uphold our traditions, our heritage, and there is no better way of doing that than to sing together the anthem of our country which represents literally everybody.
“It doesn’t matter what background you are or what differences there may be. The one thing that unites us all is being British, and there is no better year to restore this on BBC One and other broadcasters as well than the year of the Queen’s platinum jubilee, and I think unfortunately so few people every hear the national anthem, let alone know the words.
“It’s never sung in schools. It’s no longer played by public broadcasters at the end of the day. Even ITV by the way used to do it. So it is time to restore it. What’s wrong with a few seconds at the end of the day, before the switchover to other channels to have the national anthem of our country? I think it’s time to bring it back.”
‘Time has changed’
Good Morning Britain presenter Kate Garraway replied: “But time has changed though hasn’t it? That was as you say played by channels because it marked a kind of end of broadcast of that time. We don’t have an end of broadcast. We view things on our phones. We download things. We go on to different platforms. There doesn’t feel like a natural moment where that could be reinstated, unless you can think of one?”
Rosindell said: “No that’s completely wrong. So BBC One stop broadcasting. They switch to another channel. The viewers, it’s not about when the programme changes. It’s the playing it at a certain point in the day, and most people watch television until late in the evening.
“Then it switches over to News 24 or something else. That’s the point where it could be played. So the idea that it can’t be done because there isn’t actually a formal closedown is simply an excuse by the BBC. That’s a pure excuse, and that’s not a reason not to play the national anthem.”
He added: “It’s not worked for the last so many years because I’m afraid there’s too much PC stuff going on and that’s why they got rid of it. It’s nothing to do with the switchover. It’s because within the BBC there’s too much political correctness. It’s not the done thing. It’s no longer modern or cool to do it. Well I disagree.
“I think young people are patriotic. I think our country needs unity and needs patriotism to bring us all together, and the very fact that so few people know the words, hardly anybody every hears the national anthem, and it shouldn’t be for just sporting occasions.
“It should be something that children for instance should sing at least once a week in assembly at schools. This happens in countries all over the world. The broadcasters never play it. The only time I’ve heard it played this year, apart from sporting occasions, is sadly when the Duke of Edinburgh died. We shouldn’t be waiting for a royal death or a sporting triumph to hear the national anthem.”
‘Senedd’
Andrew RT Davies, the Leader of the Tories in the Senedd, has backed a call for public broadcasters to play God Save the Queen every day.
He said: “Before TV went 24 hours, both Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau and God Save The Queen were played at closedown.
“I’d love to see this revived. What better way to celebrate our United Kingdom?”
The Tory Senedd member for the Vale of Clwyd, Gareth Davies said: “This would be nothing new, before News 24 and round the clock tv, channels would always play the national anthems at close of play”.
In response to the suggestion, Welsh Government minister, Lee Waters said: “The Tories are the English Nationalist Party.”
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I prefer Arglwydd mae yn nosi and that’s my final word nos da
Here we go then children, sing along. God save the Queen A fascist regime Made you a moron Potential H bomb. God save the Queen She’s not a human And there’s no future And England’s dreaming Don’t be told what you want Don’t be told what you need There’s no future No future for you. Oh when there’s no future How can there be sin We’re the flowers in the dustbin…………………………… No Future No Future Courtesy of the Sex Pistols. Some lyrics never lose their relevance. Perhaps bondage trousers could become part of the school uniform regulations. Take that earing… Read more »
Just like this?
https://youtu.be/WwsQ_5Wm4oo
We mean it maaaan… God save us all. God bless Newsnight.
Thanks for that Da wag. It really brought s smile to my face.
If only the music industry had the balls to do this now.
If only boy bands had balls. Nobody’s writing lyrics about anything anymore Mr Atkinson.
If Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell wants to brainwash English schoolchildren , which effectively is a form of political grooming, by ingraining British Nationalism into their young minds by forcing them to sing, God Save The Queen, can. But he forgets that education is devolved to Wales as it is in Scotland & Northern Ireland should stay off our turf and keep his sycophantic cap doffing ideology to himself.
Thank goodness education is develoved and our children won’t have the sing the English national anthem
devolved I mean !
I think that Freudian slip was apt. A new word for lovers of devolution.
Oh my god they really are getting desperate aren’t they?
He mentions that very few people know the words, does that include the bit about crushing rebellious Scots?
I guess there are two issues here to think about – 1. Is this a way of securing those votes lent post Brexit vote 🗳 and of those in UKIP, Veritas . Reform, Abolish the Assembly, BNP, National Front ?Britain First etc etc 🇬🇧 Or 2. An insecurity issue from ‘ Little England’ supporters in the Party looking for things to do in a post Brexit / post (ish ) Covid world 🌎 I am reminded of an elderly German Jewish lady who lived in my council ward – talking of her homeland in the 1920s and early 30s, The… Read more »
Interesting, scarily so. “well oim really patriotic, sir. Oh yesirr, an very umble why, why oim trynin me daughter ter be a doormat”!
We might well laugh at this clown and his muttering puppet in the Bay, but there is a serious issue here.
The Conservative and Unionist Party, to give it its full title, is, was and always will be an English, anglo-centric organisation. It believes that all things English are the very best for all of us, they “civilised” nations trapped in the empire – and they will do everything in their power (or for that matter outside their power) to ensure that we remain part of this empire.
Be warned!
Most insightful comment so far. The Tories are playing to their own gallery here. They don’t need to do anything else. The former red wall Labour voters who switched? A great many of them will agree with this bilge. And the Tories know it. This is why they stir up “culture wars”. They know that they can build a Westminster majority off the back of English votes. They know this stuff plays into the hands of the SNP. They know Labour does badly on this political ground. So they know they’ll win elections on it. They also actually like these… Read more »
Very true! A couple of points worth remembering is that mention of the BBC just increases the pressure on that organisation. Most Tory MPs not only want to scrap the licence fee, they also want to get rid of the BBC, along with the NHS, as they see both organisations as well past their ‘best before’ dates. Also, Keir Starmer really played into their hands by standing in front of the Butcher’s Apron and talking about patriotism. They will never let someone like him outmuscle them. A stupid move by Labour, who should just keep quite about their British nationalist… Read more »
Yes, that was very questionable by Starmer. As I’ve stated elsewhere, it will only further alienate former Labour voters in Scotland who’ve since turned to the SNP. Labour can’t outmuscle the Tories on patriotism. Appeals to Britishness will only further entrench their poor showing in Scotland and actually cost them votes in England. They’d probably do far better if they went for Nation States all round and some formal arrangements of cooperation between them – a confederacy or Council of the Isles for example.
I have Tory friends in England ;
who share the concerns you articulate…one has a son in the states who feels this intolerance is very much mirrored in parts of the Republican Party there.
The ethos that you refer to was captured perfectly by Arthur Grimble in the prologue to his autobiography, “A Pattern of Islands”. It’s a virtuoso work of irony by a misfit colonial administrator who grew to admire the people whom he was sent to govern:— “I was nominated to a cadetship in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Protectorate at the end of 1913. The cult of the great god Jingo was as yet far from dead. Most English households of the day took it for granted that nobody could be always right, or ever quite right, except an Englishman. The… Read more »
“Our country needs unity and needs patriotism”. The last time we heard this proclaimed so directly was in 1914 and 1939. We may dismiss the likes of Rosindell as Tory Establishment puppets but the tone of his message is scary and has deep ideological roots. The idea put out in this narrative is that English equals British. An old chestnut for us Celts, admittedly, but that is something that will play well, for different reasons, in many Brexit heartlands, especially the post-industrial areas of the north of England and the socially conservative Shires. We are being warned!
Someone needs his nurse…
I am a teacher. I will NOT be doing that!
And that is why we have devolution so foreign politicians like him can’t force their right wing dogma onto our youngsters
Devolution is precarious.
Independence is required.
I agree 100% with you.
The tories wanting to groom children? What a shocker!!
Doesn’t even realise that the union between England and Scotland in which Wales and Ireland were illegaly dragged into it isn’t a country. If Britain is a country, then so is the EU.
Why do they all want to live in an imagined past? Is the present too difficult for them.
I don’t mind if they do, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to join them.
“Represents literally everybody”?? The very first word excludes the non-religious 25 to 50% of the population.
Not in wales 🏴 no English royals in wales 🏴 we in wales have got to stop being little Englanders and be proud to be welsh it’s time for a new wales 🏴
‘Grayham’ – just noticed something about your most recent post that makes me wonder even more (than your constant, very repetitive messages) whether your a ‘plant’ – all references to England use a capital letter, all references to Wales/ Welsh use lower case….
What a knob, perhaps Prince Andrew could personally visit schools to to teach the children the words……….. perhaps not🤔
“uphold our traditions, our heritage” Whose traditions and heritage? Because all I see of that heritage comes from Eton and the English establishment. Nothing sang in their national anthem represents me. I’m a non religious republican who is also a left wing Welsh nationalist who doesn’t hate Scottish people. Nothing in THEIR anthem represents me at all. He can’t claim that dirge represents people when it doesn’t for a large chunk of the population who have more than one brain cell.
For a supposed union, why is their national anthem calling for the crushing of one of its members?
Maybe we could put “cull the English” into their anthem to level it out?
Is this all he has to say, he did the same thing 6 years ago :
https://youtu.be/WwsQ_5Wm4oo
Find it weird that this isnt mentioned in any other article about this current story,
when a quick search on google will show that Andrew Rosindell has done this rubbish before.
Its almost like a pattern, you’d think that would be relevant to this story?
Brilliant idea and those singing loudest are the most British Britain’s ever and nevermind that their sh*try little land is sinking. Then again, jog on, Tory boy.
I really wonder about these people’s mentality. They seem to think hugely divisive policies are fine, as long as everyone has to fly their wretched flag and sing their wretched song.
Still, at least they no longer sing the notorious verse about “Rebellious Scots to crush”. Or not in public, anyway.
They really are scared these days that they’ll lose power outside England. Technically mind you, they are already out of power in these areas anyway and it’s to late for nationalist crap such as this. It’s only a matter of time before the UK ends. They’ve only got themselves to blame their attitude has stunk for centuries.
Can’t wait to hear the Scottish reaction to this piece of cosmetic unionism.
The one thing the English have been undisputed world leaders in (well one of two things, the first is their imagination when it comes to child abuse) is soft power. They were geniuses at persuading other countries and cultures to view the English as superior. They didn’t need to resort to bullets and cruelty to achieve it (although that option was always there). Nations all over the world, including Cymru, now see their own culture and language as naturally inferior to English. They pulled that off by being very clever and very subtle. As a Welsh nationalist i welcome this… Read more »
I wholly agree, but nobody has mentioned the problem of the Monarchy that underlies all this. A modern democratic state does not need a monarchy, never mind a terrible national anthem.
Interetsed readers may like to acquire the book “The Myth of British Monarchy” by the late Prof Edgar Wilson available from Republic. It is a very readable and thorough deconstruction of the (il)logic tht the Tories put out about why there should be a monarchy in the UK.
As one of his unfortunate constituents, i can categorically state that this idiot is an embarrassment to the town every time he opens his ignorant xenophobic gob