Editorial: Britishness should inspire, not stifle

Conducted by Ipsos Mori, the study finds that being Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish carries more emotional resonance than being British, which is equated by the young people of these nations to being English - as well as arrogant and aggressive. Indeed, young white English people by and large find it hard to distinguish between being English and being British. Black and minority ethnic identities also carry more emotional resonance.

These findings alone might not come as a great surprise. But more pertinent to adolescents across the UK, Britishness is seen as unchanging, static and imposed upon them. It represents an old, hierarchical political discourse, and carries associations of "the queen, tea and crumpets". This sits at stark odds with the fresh, inventive and often chaotic project of being young, where other facets in shaping identity such as preferences in music, sport and fashion hold more sway. Young people are unable to see how Britishness can work as a shared social identity.