Please remember not to talk about religion or politics over the turkey this Christmas. It can cause terrible rows. One of the functions of the BBC, especially Radio 4, is to host such discussions, so that we don’t have to. The Moral Maze is still worth a listen, from time to time. This week, some of the panel and some of the guests were half-daring to discuss a profoundly difficult question. Is ethno-nationalism something we should condemn? Or should we be realistic, that it is an inevitable component of politics?

We are schooled in the evasion of this question. The evasion is largely benign. For there is a fine line between brave honesty and racism. Consider this question: am I, whose ancestors were, I think, all born in the British Isles since the middle ages, more British than someone whose parents migrated here? In fact, come to think of it, one of my grandfathers was born in India, but you get the picture.

Or this........

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