Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned on X on 17 September 2023 that people born in England should not have their Englishness questioned because of their skin colour.
The comments followed Sunak’s Cowdrey Lecture at the Marylebone Cricket Club on Thursday, where he reflected on cricket’s role in British life and the broader debate over identity and integration.
Sunak said he had seen online posts after leaving office that questioned his Englishness because he is a "brown Hindu", calling it a "reverse Tebbit test" that could alienate those who identify as English.
He added that while immigration and Islamism pose challenges, the country can pursue a high bar for legal migration and deportation of asylum seekers to Rwanda without reducing the right to a shared British identity.
Citing cricket as a unifying force, Sunak noted that the sport brings together white rural constituents in the Yorkshire Dales and British Asian children in Bradford, urging all to cheer for the same team.
The former prime minister warned that denying people their Englishness or Britishness because of skin colour risks creating a two‑tier society, and his remarks are set to influence policy discussions on immigration and integration.