Good day Al,
The British Isles is not just the English, but includes Scotland, Ireland and Wales. The last time I looked The Republic of Ireland was an independent country with its own tri-colour flag, and is not part of the United Kingdom. Go out on St. Patrick’s Day and you will see many people flying the Irish Tri-Colour and not many Union Jacks.
As for the Canadians of Scottish descent, when they wish to display their heritage by flying a flag, many would fly the Cross of St Andrew or the Scottish Lion and not the Union Jack. Many Scots would get upset if you were to call them “English”.
Even if you were to lump all the people who trace their heritage back to the British Isles as one ethnic group, you still only come up with a total of 28%. That means that 72% of Canadians have no connection to the British Isles. Lets face it, Canada is a country of minorities, unless you are willing to consider “Canadian” to be a nationally.
Language spoken is an entirely different issue from that of ethnic origin. English is the most widely spoken language on earth. Most people in the US also speak English, but they do not consider themselves to be British. English is one of the two official Languages in the Philippines, but the only Union Jack that you will find is that flying in front of the British Embassy.
John
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