The long campaign for a Scottish Parliament, its establishment in 1999 and the
‘evolution of devolution’ since have highlighted, in the United Kingdom and
internationally, the awareness of a multi-national Britain and the resilience of
Scottish identity. Most people in Scotland define themselves as Scottish, but
differences exist between national (Scottish) and state (British) identities. Scottish
national identity ‘has a pervasive effect, colouring virtually all aspects of social
and political life (Paterson et al. 2001: 120). Is the Scottish Parliament the product
of anti-English ‘Braveheartery’, an expression and achievement of mobilized
national identity? Or is national identity becoming less ‘forefront’ thanks to constitutional change, allowing increased attention to the diverse internal identities
(regional, class, ethnicity and so on) in Scotland, but also a less strained relationship with other, complementary (British and European) identities?
