To understand Britain's Choices, says More In Common, we first need to recognise what we agree on

The late Jo Cox, the inspiration for More In Common (and A/UK)

The Alternative UK has quite a deep and intrinsic relationship with More In Common, the think-tank aiming to support common bonds across ideological and other divisions in the UK and beyond.

We were conceived in the days after Jo Cox MP’s murder in the run-up to the Brexit vote - “we have more in common” was one of Cox’s campaigning catchphrases. Part of the immediate aim of A/UK was to probe beneath the surface of phrases like “take back control”, and discern the recognisable and shared human impulses behind that.

So it’s great to see this new and substantial report from More In Common, titled “Britain's Choice: Common Ground and Division in 2020s Britain”. Their promotional Twitter thread below identifies the headlines:

🙌🏽 Out today - Britain's Choice: More in Common UK's deep dive into the political psyche of 🇬🇧. We find rich insights where Britain really stands in light of Covid-19, community, culture wars, Brexit and politics. Bottom line: we are not as divided as we think we are.

💥#Covid-19 sparked a burst of social solidarity, and Brits want to seize this opportunity to transform the country: by a margin of 2:1 people say we must make important changes in the wake of the pandemic. 

😴 Brits are tired of political divisiveness and know where the blame lies: almost half say political parties are the main cause, with 39% blaming social media and 29% blaming traditional media. 

🇬🇧 Britain is not divided into two camps like the US: instead, we find seven groups which form a kaleidoscope of clusters on different issues. 

🗣 ‘Culture wars’ are fought by tiny minority, with just 13% of the population making up 50% of social media users. Check out @michaelsavage piece in the Guardian for more on that: 

🔚Class labels and left-right divides are increasingly redundant: only 22% of Britons say they have a clear left or right identity, with over 50% describing themselves as in the centre. 

🌱We share common ground on a surprising number of issues. Overwhelmingly, Brits agree on the need to tackle inequality and climate change. 85% of people believe climate change concerns us all. 

📝The report ‘Britain’s Choice’ polled 10,000 people, and drew on the findings of focus groups all over the UK and individual interviews with @YouGov. Go to: britainschoice.uk 

From this research, More in Common have hazarded a new social typology of Covid-era Britain. See graphic below, and then thumbnails of each type:

We set out to better understand what divides as well as what unites us. Our conclusion is that Britain is not divided into two opposing camps of Remain versus Leave, left versus right, North versus South, or rich versus poor. Instead, we find seven distinct groups, who are distinguished not by who they are, where they are from, or what they look like, but what they believe. 

Progressive Activists (13 per cent of the population): A vocal group for whom politics is at the core of their identity, and who seek to correct the historic marginalisation of groups based on their race, gender, sexuality, wealth and other forms of privilege. They are politically-engaged, critical, opinionated, frustrated, cosmopolitan and environmentally conscious.

Civic Pragmatists (13 per cent of the population): A group that cares about others, at home and abroad, who are turned off by the divisiveness of politics. They are charitable, concerned, exhausted, community-minded, open to compromise, and socially liberal.

Disengaged Battlers (12 per cent of the population): A group that feels that they are just keeping their heads above water, and who blame the system for its unfairness. They are tolerant, insecure, disillusioned, disconnected, overlooked, and socially liberal.

Established Liberals (12 per cent of the population): A group that has done well and means well towards others, but also sees a lot of good in the status quo. They are comfortable, privileged, cosmopolitan, trusting, confident, and pro-market.

Loyal Nationals (17 per cent of the population): A group that is anxious about the threats facing Britain and those facing themselves. They are proud, patriotic, tribal, protective, threatened, aggrieved, and frustrated about the gap between the haves and the have-nots.

Disengaged Traditionalists (18 per cent of the population): A group that values a well-ordered society, prides itself in hard work, and wants strong leadership that keeps people in line. They are self-reliant, ordered, patriotic, tough-minded, suspicious, and disconnected.

Backbone Conservatives (15 per cent of the population): A group who are proud of their country, optimistic about Britain’s future outside of Europe, and who keenly follow the news, mostly via traditional media sources. They are nostalgic, patriotic, sturdy, proud, secure, confident, and relatively engaged with politics.

***

Understanding those seven groups, each with their distinctive values and priorities, helps us better understand our differences and our common ground. Overcoming divisions, whether shallow or deep, requires more than just good feelings towards each other. We each need to make the effort to understand people who are different from us.

That’s a key aim of this mapping of Britain’s seven segments. If we better understand our differences, we can be far more effective at preventing healthy democratic differences from becoming dangerous divisions.

It is Britain’s choice whether we come together or allow the forces of division to tear us apart. Everywhere across the world, societies are being divided in “us-versus-them”. Resisting the pull of those forces is not easy, but we can make the choice not to let those forces overwhelm us.

The goal of this report is to create an evidence base for that work, so that people who want to make a difference can be more effective in their efforts, and more confident of their results.

More, from what is evidently an important substantial report, here.