Josh Babarinde Tables Bill to Expand English Census Ethnicity Options

Liberal Democrat president Josh Babarinde is leading a cross-party initiative to expand ethnicity options in the English census to include categories such as Black English and Asian English. Babarinde will table a 10-minute rule bill on Tuesday to require that respondents in every ethnic category have the option to identify as English, mirroring existing options in Scottish and Welsh censuses.

The drive follows claims by Reform UK MP Suella Braverman that Englishness is an ethnicity tied to heritage. Braverman used this view to explain why she does not consider herself ethnically English despite her South Asian heritage. In response, Reform UK Chair Zia Yusuf distanced the party from Braverman's views on English identity.

Babarinde's effort has gained backing from MPs across the Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, and Labour. Proponents argue the change is necessary to reflect the identity of millions of UK-born minority ethnic residents and athletes. While 10-minute rule bills rarely become law, the initiative seeks to challenge the notion that English identity is exclusively tied to white ethnicity.