by Louie Jerome

Created on: August 07, 2008   Last Updated: November 13, 2008

Any one who wants to live in UK (or any other country) is under an obligation to accept the rules, traditions and standards of that country. If citizens are required to swear allegiance to the flag, then those whose accept the hospitality of the country for any length of time should be required to do the same.

Swearing allegiance to the flag is not something that is commoin practise in UK but there has been much discussion about the issue. It is possible that this will be introduced in next couple of years.

There is such an eclectic mix of nationalities and cultures in UK at the current time that it is time that there was a way of pulling it all together and uniting the people. We need to find a way of putting the 'United' back in the United Kingdom.

People from many countries, particularly from the European Union are coming in droves to settle here, and in order for them to be integrated and accepted into the community they must have something in common with the indigenous population. At presence there is no requirement to integrate and become part of the country and many ethnic groups set up their own social structures and even their own laws. This divides them from the rest of the population and because of that division and the seemingly unwilling attitude of these people when it comes to integration, there is inevitably tension.

If everyone, not just immigrants, had to swear allegiance to the Queen (and her government) and was legally bound by that pledge, every single person in Britain would have something in common. Each and every one would have a legal obligation to be loyal to Queen and Country.

Historically, those who did not swear allegiance to the crown and were found guilty of treason were at best imprisoned in the Tower of London, and at worst decapitated for their crime. Treason is still a capital offence in UK but fortunately (or not) we have moved on from this simple, effective way of dealing with offenders.

Recent UK government reports have suggested that requiring school children to take an oath of allegiance to Queen and Country would be a good start as it would give children, particularly troublesome teenagers a sense of belonging to the nation.

It has also been suggested that volunteers who swear allegiance should pay less council tax and lower student fees. This certainly defeats the object of the exercise. Let's all go and line up to make our pledge if we can pay less tax by simply uttering a few words written on a card.

This idea seems to totally negate the whole thing. If people are required by law to swear allegiance to the Queen, or leave the country, there is no need to give them bribes. The consequences of not adhering to the law should be enough to make the system work. Maybe this does sound like an old Draconian kind of measure, but perhaps it's a case of 'needs must'.

In order to engender unity and loyalty in the people of UK, a law requiring every person to swear allegiance to the Queen and the determination to uphold that law would make the country a much better integrated place to live and could do much to engender the feeling that being British and living in our islands is something to be proud of.
So, yes, anyone who wishes to be a UK citizen should be forced to swear allegiance to the flag which stands for Queen and Country, or find somewhere else to live. For me it comes down to the fact that people who do not wish to live by the rules that most people adhere to should not accept the benefits of living in a country.

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