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UK 2008 Rundown
Posted on: 2008-12-26 14:15:45 Looking at Britain in 2008 certain themes of course stand out more than others, and perhaps none more than the introduction of sharia law, the possibility of which had first been to public attention by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. The fall and rise of the Labour Party, the rise of the Conservatives, the dashed SNP hopes for Scottish independence characterize much of politics this year. Other issues that stand out include youth violence; a terrorist attack on Glasgow airport, and another on a Giraffe restaurant in Exeter; the launch of the BBC’s controversial ‘White Season’ in March, exploring the White working class; continuing contention over mass immigration; the ratification of the Lisbon treaty; the death of “baby P”; the months-long campaign and final victory of the Gurkha war heroes to be allowed to stay in Britain; and the unprecedented arrest of Conservative MP Damian Green. I have divided the year under four different heading: ‘sharia,’ ‘terrorism,’ ‘law and order,’ and ‘politics,’ in the hope that this will help elucidate the history of particular events. However, naturally, an event appearing in one section might overlap with another, and the contents of each section is sometimes broader than the title might suggest. Events are listed chronologically with a minimum of commentary. SHARIA February: o The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, suggests that the adoption of certain aspects of sharia law in Britain seems “unavoidable.” |