ENGLAND must forge a separate identity to Britain if the union is to survive, an MP told a Winchester lecture.

Former cabinet minister John Denham outlined his vision for England in a talk at Winchester University.

The MP, who is stepping down from his Southampton Itchen seat next year, called on the country to determine its own future “for the common good”.

He rejected calls for an English parliament, but said: “Right around the world, including here, questions of national identity are going up the agenda, not down. This is a time for nation building.”