Clegg to debate 'Britishness'

Thursday, 17 September 2009 12:00 AM

By politics.co.uk staff

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg will debate what it means to be British in the wake of a resurgence of right-wing protests.

The Lib Dems have decided to debate the controversial issue after recent protests by groups such as the English Defence League in Birmingham and Harrow have put the question of race and equality back in the spotlight.

Mr Clegg said: "After 12 years of New Labour trampling individual civil liberties, vilifying asylum seekers and pandering to populism on law and order, basic British tolerance is now under threat.

"Despite all the shiny rebranding, Cameron's Conservatives still don't understand modern Britain and have no representation in the diverse inner city communities of this country.

"That's why it falls to the Liberal Democrats to rediscover an inclusive, positive sense of British identity where the old values of tolerance and pluralism are celebrated once again."

Mr Clegg will debate the issue in conversation with journalist Yasmin Alibhai Brown at the Liberal Democrat conference.

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