The First Minister has dismissed a UK Government-backed campaign for children to sing a patriotic British song in school as “ludicrous”.
Nicola Sturgeon even said she thought the idea was a “spoof” when it circulated on social media.
The song is part of a campaign started by an ex-police officer who wanted a day of celebration to foster pride in Britain.
The UK Government’s department for education promoted the idea for schools across the UK to participate in One Britain One Nation Day on Friday.
The lyrics include the line: “We are Britain and we have one dream, to unite all people in one great team.”
Schools are asked to join in and children are encouraged to clap.
However, Sturgeon shot down the plan: “I have to say when I saw it on social media yesterday I assumed it was a spoof, I didn’t think it was real.”
“I’m trying to imagine the outrage there would be if the Scottish Government was insisting or even encouraging Scottish school kids to sing some song about how great Scotland is,” she said.
“People would be – and rightly so – up in arms about it.
“It’s ludicrous and it perhaps says everything about the disinterest the UK Government has in Scotland that they’re asking this to happen on the day Scottish schools go off on their holiday.”
She said: “Every aspect of it is ludicrous and I think it says sadly so much that we know about the misguided priorities, the hypocrisy and just the ridiculous nature of a lot of what this UK Government is doing,” she added.
“Meanwhile, EU citizens that have been here for most of the lives and are working so hard to help make the country what it is are having to jump through hoops to stay here.”
Retired police inspector Kash Singh, who came up with the idea, told Times Radio: “We started the concept in Bradford and West Yorkshire, and it’s been very, very successful indeed, so what we want to look at is taking it across the nation.
“It was something that was born from my dream as a police officer, in terms of what I’d see, in terms of my passion, pride and frustration, and something that I feel needed to be done in this country.
“This country is a brilliant country. I came to this country as a six-year-old kid who couldn’t speak a word of English.”
