An English national anthem is needed says MP Justin Madders (Lab).
The Ellesmere Port and Neston parliamentarian is encouraging English sporting fans to add their name to a new petition.
The proposal for a new anthem, to be played when England, not Great Britain, is being represented on the sporting field has passed its first stage in Parliament and people across the country now have a chance to show their support for the idea.
Backers point out Wales has ‘Land of our fathers’ and Scotland has ‘Flower of Scotland’.
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Mr Madders said: “I encourage people in Ellesmere Port and Neston who back the idea of an English National Anthem to add their name to the petition.
“God Save the Queen is Britain’s anthem and should be kept for Britain and just as England fans have the flag of St George so they should have a specifically English anthem.
“If the petition shows plenty of support for the idea then the government should undertake a proper consultation to select a fitting anthem.”
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Anyone wanting to add their name can find the petition at: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/119904. At the time of writing the number of signatories was climbing towards 2,000.
An English National Anthem Bill was adopted by the House of Commons in January and the idea is to be debated again on Friday March 4. The petition has been set up so that people can make their feelings known and hopefully influence their MPs to support the Bill.
