Farage considers himself English and British, and values these groups over others. So he considers empowering either Europe or Scotland to be bad, because they are not England or Britain.
Europe can’t become a nation until it has a lot more self-identified nationals. The UK is actually an interesting example of the kind of empire-country that the EU could aspire to become.
Relatively few people in the UK primarily identify themselves as British. More see themselves primarily as English, Scottish and Welsh. But for most of these people, it doesn’t stop them also identifying as British. (And let us not forget the Cornish, Manx, Orcadians, Shetlanders, Jèrriais, Guernésiais, Auregnais, Sercquiais, Northerners and others who may comfortably hold a stronger local identity as well as a weaker British one.)
Similar regionalism occurs in most European countries of course, though perhaps only Belgium and Spain rival the UK in this way. (Belgium is perhaps a good example of the EU in miniature. In the last 15 years it has twice gone around two years without an elected government, yet it’s machinery of state and local governments have continued to govern.)
In the cases you raise, “decentralisation” is indistinguishable from nationalism. They are examples of people wanting to be governed as a smaller group than they are currently, and that group is a nation.
Also relevant to the discussion: Catalan independence, Flemish independence (Belgium), Scottish independence.
We should distinguish between appetite for decentralization and nationalism. E.g. Farage was for Brexit, but against Scottish independence.
Farage considers himself English and British, and values these groups over others. So he considers empowering either Europe or Scotland to be bad, because they are not England or Britain.
Europe can’t become a nation until it has a lot more self-identified nationals. The UK is actually an interesting example of the kind of empire-country that the EU could aspire to become.
Relatively few people in the UK primarily identify themselves as British. More see themselves primarily as English, Scottish and Welsh. But for most of these people, it doesn’t stop them also identifying as British. (And let us not forget the Cornish, Manx, Orcadians, Shetlanders, Jèrriais, Guernésiais, Auregnais, Sercquiais, Northerners and others who may comfortably hold a stronger local identity as well as a weaker British one.)
Similar regionalism occurs in most European countries of course, though perhaps only Belgium and Spain rival the UK in this way. (Belgium is perhaps a good example of the EU in miniature. In the last 15 years it has twice gone around two years without an elected government, yet it’s machinery of state and local governments have continued to govern.)
In the cases you raise, “decentralisation” is indistinguishable from nationalism. They are examples of people wanting to be governed as a smaller group than they are currently, and that group is a nation.