Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom
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The
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) based on population survey figures from 2019, people from ethnic minority backgrounds make up 14.4% of the United Kingdom (16.1% for England, 5.9% for Wales, 5.4% for Scotland and 2.2% for Northern Ireland).[1]
History
A variety of ethnic groups have settled on the British Isles, dating back from the last ice age up until the 11th century. These populations included the
King William the Conqueror, introduced the first
Since 1948 and particularly from the mid 1950's, immigration from the
Sociologist Steven Vertovec presents the idea of superdiversity in Britain, a notion that states that the increasing population of ethnic groups and communities are creating new, and smaller, ethnic minorities in Britain. The dynamics of superdiversity influence the social and economic patterns of the United Kingdom and have created complex social frameworks.[12]
Official classification of ethnicity
The definition of ethnicity has been defined as "the social group a person belongs to, and either identifies with or is identified with by others, as a result of a mix of cultural and other factors including language, diet, religion, ancestry and physical features traditionally associated with race".[14]
The
Population by ethnicity
The population of the United Kingdom and its constituent countries are ethnically diverse today. From the beginning of modern migration to the country, the White population has been in proportional decline, however the question of ethnicity was only first asked in the 1991 census. In the four pie charts below shows the ethnic make up of each country of the United Kingdom and as a whole over time.
National minorities
The British government recognises the Scottish, Welsh, Irish and Cornish peoples as national minorities under the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, which the UK signed in 1995 and ratified in 1998.[22]
A proposal for Longitudinal Study of Ethnic Minorities (LSEM) was suggested by sociologist James Nazroo to create designated ethnic groups under Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Caribbean and Black African.[23] The LSEM understood the constraints of the oversampling of groups and refined the methods of categorising the ethnic minorities.
Multiculturalism and integration
It is estimated that in 1950 there were no more than 20,000 non-white residents in the United Kingdom, almost all having been born outside the UK and now mainly residing in England.[24]
However, the considerable migration after World War II increased the ethnic and racial diversity of UK, especially in London. The race relations policies that have been developed broadly reflect the principles of multiculturalism, although there is no official national commitment to multiculturalism.[25][26][27]
The national identity of 'being British' is to respect the laws and parliamentary structures, as well as all maintaining the right to equality, however, this does not cover the concept of multiculturalism. This concept of 'being British' faces criticism on the grounds that it has failed to sufficiently promote social integration,.[28][29][30] Some commentators have questioned the dichotomy between diversity and integration.[29] and since 2001 it has been argued that the UK government has moved away from policy characterised by multiculturalism, and towards the assimilation of minority communities.[31]
In 2016, the British government held a
Attitudes to multiculturalism
A poll conducted by
A study conducted for the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) in 2005, found that in England, the majority of ethnic minority participants called themselves British, whereas white English participants said English first and British second. In Wales and Scotland the majority of white and ethnic minority participants identified with Welsh or Scottish first and British second.[35] Research suggests that on average ethnic minorities are twice as likely to say their ethnicity is important to them than white British participants, although the extent of this difference also interacted with political beliefs.[36]
Other research conducted for the CRE found that white participants felt that there was a threat to
Political representation
Ethnic minorities have been under-represented in comparison with their white counterparts in the United Kingdom's political system, particularly in the British Parliament.[38] In 1981, the Home Affairs Select Committee report stated that an "increase in ethnic minority involvement in politics will create ... special representation for ethnic minorities".[39] However, in 2017 Theresa May stated that ethnic minorities were still under-represented.[40] In 2019, 65 Members of Parliament (MPs) or 10% of all MPs were from an ethnic minority background.[41]
Representation in Parliament
Representation of ethnic minorities in Parliament began in 1987, seeing four ethnic minorities being elected into parliament. Among them was Diane Abbott, Britain's first black female Member of Parliament, who began as a member of the shadow cabinet and is now a prominent figure within the Labour Party.[42]
Prior to the 2010 elections, the Conservatives had 2 MPs who were minorities and this increased to 11 after the 2010 General Election.[43] After the 2017 General Elections, 52 minority MPs were elected, shared between Labour (32) and the Conservative (19) and one from the Liberal Democrats.[44] The 2019 general elections showed an increase in these numbers with Labour having 41, the Conservatives having 22 and the Liberal Democrats having 2 ethnic-minority MPs.[41]
Representation in Local Councils
In 2018, 3.7% of all local government officials had an ethnic minority background.[45] London councils had the highest percentage for representation in their local councils in late 2017, 10.5%; this increased from 5.6% previously in the year.[45] Outside London, councils have an average of 3% minority representation.[45] In Scotland, 3.2% of local government officials are ethnic minorities, almost proportionately representing the 3.32% ethnic minority.[46]
Since the 1980s, the number of minority councillors has been increasing over time, however, the main parties of minorities involved were the Labour party, with 94.4% of minority councillors affiliated with the Labour Party.[39]
There were 35 minority councillors in London local councils in 1978 and this had increased to 193 by 1990.[39] This was 10% of the 1,915 councillors representing 20% of London's population.[39] According to a Census of Local Authority Councillors in 2013, there was 3.7% representation for minorities across all councils, compared to a representation of 13% nationally.[47] Labour continues to have the largest proportion of ethnic minority councillors with 9.2%, followed by the Conservatives with 1.5%.[47]
See also
- British people
- Demographics of the United Kingdom
- Foreign-born population of the United Kingdom
- Genetic history of the British Isles
- Historical immigration to Great Britain
- Modern immigration to the United Kingdom
- Languages of the United Kingdom
- List of electoral firsts in the United Kingdom
- Romanichal
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