Pearl of Tyburn: We now have Rev.
Ricky Yates coming to us from Prague, Czech Republic. Good evening!
Ricky Yates: Good evening Pearl!
P.T.: First, could you tell me a little bit about
your background and work?
R.Y.: I'm British man, born 20 days after H M the
Queen came to the throne, so like Her Majesty, I celebrated my Diamond Jubilee
in 2012 :) I've been an ordained Anglican priest for nearly 25 years &
since September 2008, I've been the resident Anglican Chaplain in Prague.
P.T.: Do you belong to any political party?
R.Y.: I used to be a paid up member of the Liberal
Democrats, but I have no party affiliation at present. I'm also not currently
registered to vote in the UK.
P.T.: Do you consider yourself more predominately
English or British?
R.Y.: Interesting question! I'm English in that I
was born in England of English parents. But particularly here in the Czech
Republic, I usually say I'm British, not least because I travel on a British
passport & my Czech residency documentation says 'United Kingdom' (in Czech
of course), as being my nationality.
P.T.: So what is your reaction to the prospect of
breaking up the union through Scottish independence?
R.Y.: I think it would be very foolish. I strongly
believe in the devolution of powers to Scotland & Wales, but I don't see
any reason for complete separation. The SNP might argue otherwise, but the fact
is that England subsidies both Scotland and Wales and there would be
understandable calls for that financial support to cease should Scotland become
independent.
P.T.: What do you think of the concept of
federalization?
R.Y.: It depends what you mean by federalization.
But if you mean each constituent country of the UK being self-governing but
with defense, foreign affairs etc being the responsibility of a UK wide federal
government, as in the USA or Australia, then I would be in favour of that. At
the moment, you have laws for England & sometimes Wales, being voted on by
Scottish MPs when English MPs cannot vote on laws relating to Scotland.
P.T.: Do you consider yourself
“European” and how do you feel about the European Union and the future of
Scotland/Britain within in, depending upon the outcome of the referendum?
R.Y.: I certainly regard myself as
European - after all, my wife is German & we live in the Czech Republic.
Whilst the EU isn't perfect, it has maintained peace post WW2, greatly assisted
trade & economic development & made travel so much easier.
The UK
would be shooting itself in the foot if it were to leave the EU. And I'm one of
about two million British citizens who live in other EU member states & our
situation would become very uncertain.
P.T.: What do you think the
difference would be (if any) for an independent Scotland in the EU as opposed
to being within the UK?
R.Y.: There is no guarantee that an
independent Scotland would be part of the EU. This is one of the strong
arguments against independence. For example, the Spanish would oppose an
independent Scotland being allowed to join as it would set a precedent for
Catalonia.
P.T.: Ah. I wonder if Italy feels the
same way about Venice, and France about Brittany....
R.Y.: Exactly! The Spanish have been
the most vocal on this matter but there would be similar concerns in Italy
& France.
P.T.: How has living in the Czech Republic affected your views
on unions and separation?
R.Y.: What I did want to
say is that I live in part of a country that also divided in two on 01/01/1993
when Czechoslovakia divided into the Czech Republic & Slovakia. I've heard
from many Czechs & Slovaks as to how much they regret that break up.
Relatively few Czechs live in Slovakia whereas many Slovaks live and work in
the Czech Republic & in many ways, find themselves at a disadvantage
because they are now 'foreigners' in what was previously their own country.
A similar situation would arise if Scotland became
independent. Relatively few English people live in Scotland, but many more
Scots live & work in England & might be left feeling like Slovaks do
here in the Czech Republic.
P.T.: Do you think there
is ever a chance of Czechoslovakia being reunified?
R.Y.: No - It would be
very difficult to put the two countries back together & the same would
apply to England and Scotland. Back to one of my very early points. The Czechs,
in some measure, financially supported the Slovaks before the Velvet Divorce.
That financial support went with the division into two. Slovakia is about the
same size as the CR but with less that half the population. It is mainly rural
& mountainous. I hope the parallels are clear.
P.T.: What do you think about the
monarchy and how it applies to the national identity and the union? Can you
tell me about your experience with Prince Charles and The Duchess of Cornwall?
R.Y.: My own opinion is that having a
constitutional monarchy has served the UK very well, certainly for the past 150
years, & I see no reason to change it. HM the Queen is
very strong about being the Queen of the United Kingdom. She is a strong
unifying factor. As I'm sure you're aware, Prince Charles is a far less popular
character, though attitudes towards him & the Duchess have improved
markedly in recent years.
My own
experience with meeting C & C and having to preach with them in my
congregation was a little nerve racking but equally quite enjoyable. They were
in Prague on a Sunday at the time and wanted to be at worship on a Sunday.
Prince Charles also wanted it to be seen that he was at worship! You can
read more about it here:
P.T.: This is just out of
curiosity, but did you just wake one Sunday and someone told you: "Guess
what? The prince is coming to church!" Or was this prepared?
R.Y.: I knew more than
two months in advance. See http://rickyyates.com/a-forthcoming-royal-visit/
& my subsequent
posts.
P.T.: Well, I'm sure that saved you a panic attack, lol!
R.Y.: Indeed!
P.T.: What do you think
of Alex Salmond vs. Alasdair Darling?
R.Y.: I have to say that,
being a little removed from the UK now, I haven't closely followed the debate
between these two gentlemen. But I have to confess I am not a fan of Alex
Salmond. I have always felt that he's rather full of himself - rather
self-important & if I'm honest, not a good advert for Scotland.
P.T.: What do you think
of the way BT is running there campaign?
R.Y.: Their campaign has at times, been a little negative in its
approach by only emphasizing the dangers of voting for independence rather that
stressing the benefits of the existing union.
P.T.: What do you think
that Alex Salmond and the other high-ranking SNP members hope to gain for
themselves in this push for independence?
R.Y.: I always think Alex
Salmond is far too full of his own self-importance. He obviously wants to gain
both power & kudos for himself. Many of those with him, I guess, are drawn
by power & greater recognition. Or am I being cynical? :)
P.T.: Delightfully so!
R.Y.: LOL!
P.T.: Among average
Scots, do you think that post-imperial regret may have to do with the rise in
Nationalism?
R.Y.: No - it's
more to do with the economic downturn & increasing disenchantment with the
main political parties.
P.T.: What do you think
about the way that the referendum question is phrased, putting “Yes” for
independence and “No” for the Union?
R.Y.: What ever way the
question was phrased, was always going to cause controversy. Hopefully, there
has been enough publicity to ensure that only a few idiots will misunderstand
& vote the opposite way to their intentions.
P.T.: Or more or less be
encouraged to think "positively" and hence, "YES"!
R.Y.: No doubt, that's
what the SNP hope!
P.T.: Do you think it
would work much?
R.Y.: No - for the reason
I gave a moment ago. By September, the publicity surrounding the referendum
should have made it abundantly clear what voting 'Yes' or 'No' will mean.
P.T.: On another subject,
many nationalists claim the British government has abused the land pretty
consistently through history, from the clearances to dumping nuclear waste in
Scotland. What is your response to this?
R.Y.: The clearances in
the 18th and 19th centuries were usually carried out by wealthy Scots to the
detriment of poorer Scots! In so many aspects of life, it is so easy to find a
scapegoat, someone else to blame. Blaming a nameless group of people down in
London makes an easy scapegoat.
With regard to nuclear waste - all governments look to
remote places to store it. Whilst I believe there is some in Scotland, a lot is
stored in NW England in Cumbria. In general, they have a somewhat idealistic
view of history with very little grip on reality. That may be a little harsh,
so I await any brickbats that come in my direction :)
P.T.: Hey, it happens…;-)
What
do you think about Celtic culture and its preservation (linguistically and
otherwise) in contrast to nationalism?
R.Y.: Independence doesn't
necessarily help with the preservation of culture & language. The Irish
Republic has been independent for nearly 100 years but despite Irish Gaelic
being the country's official language, it still is only spoken fluently by
between 5 & 10% of the population.
On the
other hand, Wales has remained within the UK & with active government
support, has seen the number of fluent Welsh speakers rise from 20 to 25% in
the past twenty years or so. I think you can very easily preserve different
cultures without the need for more small independent nations.
P.T.: What was your personal
experience in Wales and with the Welsh language?
And
what practical ways do you think could be made to preserve that sort of culture
within the union?
R.Y.: I spent three years studying
for my first degree at a small University College located in a predominantly
Welsh-speaking town, even allowing for the College being an anglicising
influence :) I enjoyed hearing Welsh being spoken and made some effort to at
least understand the basics of the language, particularly how to pronounce it!
All
children in Wales are taught Welsh until they are 16, there is a Welsh medium
TV channel, both of which are financed by UK government money. The Welsh
culture has been preserved within the UK, together with the delegation of
powers to the Welsh Assembly just as the current Scottish parliament has it's
local law making powers.
P.T.: As an Englishman,
what’s your opinion on David Cameron and his encouraging English people to call
their Scottish friends and relatives to urge them to stay in the Union?
R.Y.: I think he has
every right to do so. Why should the Prime Minister of the UK be silent on the
issue? He values the union & wants to see it preserved. And he's entitled
to say what he has said.
P.T.: To wrap things up,
could you tell me a little big about what you see for yourself in the future,
and your interests/hobbies?
R.Y.: I hope to retire
from full time ministry in less than three years time - Easter 2017. I then
hope to spend more time writing & possibly undertake another long-distance
pilgrimage either to Santiago de Compostela walking from Prague or Prague to
Jerusalem!
P.T.: Well, good luck with all these future endeavors, and thank you for
taking the time out for the interview.
R.Y.: My pleasure.
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