Burnham signals support for bill to make ‘Black English’ and ‘Asian English’ census options

PM welcomes cross-party push to reject ethnic basis for Englishness promoted by Reform UK politicians

Andy Burnham has said he is likely to support a bill tabled by a Liberal Democrat MP that would allow people to define themselves as both black and English for ethnicity options in the census for England.

The bill was drawn up by Josh Babarinde, the Lib Dem president, with backing from a cross-party mix of MPs including David Lammy, a former Labour deputy prime minister, and James Cleverly, the Conservative former foreign secretary.

The push is a riposte to Reform UK politicians such as Suella Braverman who have claimed that people from minority ethnic backgrounds cannot have English ethnic identity.

Addressing Burnham at prime minister’s questions, Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, said some MPs had “shamefully” argued for what he called the racist idea that only white people can be English.

Davey went on: “We must reject it, as the Conservative leader, to her great credit, has done. We should start with the census, with the only English option, when you are asked about your ethnicity, is White English.”

Saying that Babarinde’s bill would create new options such as Black English and Asian English, Davey asked Burnham if he would support this.

Burnham replied by saying he also praised Badenoch for rejecting the idea of an ethnic basis for Englishness, going on: “Because on some issues, we should rise above party politics. We should recognise when things are completely unacceptable, and join common cause against them.

“Can I say to him, I haven’t looked at the detail of the bill, but I stand here thinking that I would want to support that bill to directly take on the poisonous politics that we’ve seen from some in this house who are seeking to divide us.

“We must move on from a decade of division and drift in this country. We must bring people back together. I am interested in working with anyone in this house who shares that aim.”

Babarinde’s bill is what is known as a 10-minute rule bill, which would not get any parliamentary time and thus have a chance of becoming law without the government giving it time in the Commons.

In England, the ethnic group question on the census offers “English” only within the “White” category, although about 11% of UK-born population in England and Wales are from a minority ethnic background.

Asian, black, mixed and other respondents can describe themselves as British, for example “Asian or Asian British”, but have no option to describe themselves as English.

This stands in contrast to the census in Scotland and Wales, which offers options such as “Scottish Asian”, and “Black Welsh”.

Setting out the reasons for his bill to the Guardian earlier this week, Babarinde said the current definition meant 60% of England’s World Cup squad would not technically be classified as English on the census.

“I’m a proud Englishman and Englishness is about more than the colour of your skin,” Babarinde said. “Most people in this country already agree that you don’t have to be white to be English. Just look at the England football team. But our census hasn’t properly caught up.”