Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called on Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the billionaire co-owner of Manchester United, to apologise for claiming the UK is being “colonised” by immigrants. In an interview with Sky News on Wednesday, the Ineos chairman, who moved to tax-free Monaco in 2020, also criticised the number of people on benefits, saying the economy cannot support “9 million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants”.
Ratcliffe said: “The UK is being colonised by immigrants, really, isn’t it? I mean, the population of the UK was 58 million in 2020, now it’s 70 million. That’s 12 million people.” However, Office for National Statistics data shows the population was estimated at 67 million in 2020, not 58 million, and was last near that figure in 2000.
Responding on X, Starmer described the comments as “offensive and wrong”, adding: “Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country. Jim Ratcliffe should apologise.” A Downing Street spokesperson said the remarks “play into the hands of those who want to divide our country” and called for an immediate apology.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy offered a more nuanced response, telling Sky News Ratcliffe was “right to say that there are too many people who have been written off” but stressing the need for a trustworthy immigration system. The criticism of benefits comes shortly after the government awarded Ineos a £120m grant to protect 500 jobs.
Ratcliffe, who backed Brexit and has lobbied against green taxes, compared Starmer unfavourably with Reform leader Nigel Farage, whom he described as “an intelligent man”. He said the UK needed a leader “prepared to be unpopular for a period of time” to tackle immigration and welfare dependency.
