THESE ISLANDS: OUR PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE

In the ongoing debate about the UK’s constitutional future, the stories that people tell and believe about the country will have a crucial part to play. In recent years, nationalists have tended to be better at forging a narrative than those who believe that more unites the people of the United Kingdom than divides them.

History, however, and the shared ideals and interests that have long bound the constituent nations of the UK together, suggest that there is nothing inevitable about this. Recognising that narratives win referendums and elections, this conference aims to develop a shared understanding of a narrative for the UK that people can emotionally connect with: what is our story and how do we best tell it?

Tickets are now available via Eventbrite.

The provisional programme is below, and individual session timings will follow soon.

Day 1: Friday 21st February 12:00 - 18:30

The United Kingdom; The Case For Cooperation

Gordon Brown (Former Prime Minister)

The Regional Perspective

Andy Burnham (Mayor of Greater Manchester)
Daniel Robinson (Policy Advisor and Historian, Magdalen College, Oxford)
Rachael Hamilton (MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)
Frances Weetman (Councillor and Author)

The Historical Perspective

Jane Ohlmeyer (Erasmus Smith's Professor of Modern History, Trinity College Dublin)
Clare Jackson (Historian, Author, and Broadcaster. Senior Tutor, Trinity Hall, Cambridge)
Chris Whatley (Professor of Scottish History, University of Dundee)
John Lloyd (Author and FT Columnist)
Neil McLennan (Senior Lecturer and Education Specialist, University of Aberdeen)

The Language of Debate

Eddie Barnes (Former Director of Strategy, Scottish Conservative Party)
Fiona Hill (Former Chief of Staff to PM Theresa May)
Alan Roden (Political Consultant, Former Communications Director, Scottish Labour Party)
Blair McDougall (Former Campaign Director, Better Together)
Pamela Nash (Chief Executive, Scotland in Union)

Ethics and Unions

Nigel Biggar (Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology, University of Oxford)
Angus Armstrong (Director of ESRC’s Rebuilding Macroeconomics, NIESR)
Ruth Dudley Edwards (Journalist and Author)
Ian Murray (MP for Edinburgh South)

The Northumbrians

Dan Jackson (Author)

Moderators

Tom Holland (Historian and Author)
Ali Ansari (Professor of Modern History, University of St Andrews)
Kevin Hague (Chairman, These Islands)
Iain Martin (Editor of Reaction, Columnist for The Times)
Martin Kettle (The Guardian)

Day 2: Saturday 22nd February 10:00 - 17:30

British Identity and Multiculturalism

James Kanagasooriam (Pollster and Strategist)
Baroness Joyce Quin (Former Minister of State for Europe)
Sughra Ahmed (Interfaith Specialist. Former Associate Dean for Religious Life, Stanford University)
Chandrika Kaul (Reader in Modern History, University of St Andrews)

Britain on the World Stage

Douglas Alexander (Former Cabinet Minister)
Michael Jary (Co-Founder of OC&C)
Philippe Auclair (Journalist, Author, and Broadcaster)

The Constitution Reform Group

Lord Salisbury (Constitution Reform Group)
Carwyn Jones (Former First Minister of Wales and Constitution Reform Group)
Jim Gallagher (Gwilym Gibbon Research Fellow, Nuffield College, Oxford)
Henry Hill (Assistant Editor, ConservativeHome)

The Economics of Union after Brexit

Kevin Hague (Chairman, These Islands)
Ronald MacDonald (Professor of Macroeconomics and International Finance, University of Glasgow)
Frances Coppola (Economist, Journalist, and Author)
Chi Onwurah (MP for Newcastle Central)

Two Narratives for a Future Referendum Campaign

Colin Kidd (Professor of Modern History, University of St Andrews)
Gerry Hassan (Author and Senior Research Fellow, University of Dundee)
Chris Whatley (Professor of Scottish History, University of Dundee)
Ramsay Jones (Former Special Advisor on Scotland to PM David Cameron)

Moderators

Ali Ansari (Professor of Modern History, University of St Andrews)
Ayesha Hazarika​ (Evening Standard)
Iain Martin (Editor of Reaction, Columnist for The Times)
Martin Kettle (The Guardian)