But Gaitskell was referring to more than the immutability of Britain’s (really England’s) borders. He was tracing our history to a document that was the essence of nationhood because it was the source of its defining quality, the rule of law. And if no one is keen to celebrate today’s anniversary, there is another in two years’ time that is well worth a national jamboree. In 2015, it will be 800 years since Magna Carta and events to mark the occasion are about to get under way to remind people of its continued significance.