The Meaning of Being English, By Richard Miller (London)

Just who is English now in this age of multiculturalism/multiracialism? According to Suella Braverman, the former Conservative Home Secretary, explained in the Telegraph why she "will never be truly English." "I don't feel English because I have no generational ties to English soil, no ancestral stories tied to the towns or villages of this land. My heritage, with its rich cultural and racial identity, is something distinct. I am British Asian, and I feel a deep love, gratitude and loyalty to this country. But I cannot claim to be English, nor should I. This is not exclusionary – it is honest. And it's what living in a multi-ethnic society entails." Eric Kaufmann, Professor of Politics at the University of Buckingham and Director of the Centre for Heterodox Social Science, discusses this issue with respect to the question: Is Rishi Sunak English?

https://dailysceptic.org/2025/02/27/is-rishi-sunak-english/

The piece delves into a debate that erupted earlier that week, sparked by a discussion between Konstantin Kisin and Fraser Nelson on the Triggernometry podcast. This exchange, which questioned whether Rishi Sunak, the former UK Prime Minister, could be considered "English," ignited a broader conversation about national identity, ethnicity, and the nuances that define them. Kaufmann steps in to offer clarity, drawing on his decades of research to dissect the terms and provide a reasoned perspective.

The article begins by recounting the podcast moment that set the stage. Fraser Nelson, ex-editor of The Spectator, argued that Sunak is "absolutely English," citing his birth and upbringing in England. Konstantin Kisin, however, pushed back, suggesting that Sunak's Indian ancestry and cultural markers—being a "brown Hindu," in Kisin's words—place him outside the category of Englishness, though he acknowledged Sunak's Britishness. This clash, Kaufmann notes, is a recurring one, likening it to the repetitive loop of Groundhog Day. It's a debate that flares up periodically but rarely resolves, largely because people fail to define their terms precisely.

Kaufmann's central argument is straightforward yet layered: Rishi Sunak is English by nationality but not by ethnicity. Nationality, he explains, is a legal and civic status tied to citizenship and residence. Sunak, born in Southampton in 1980 to Indian parents who immigrated from East Africa, holds British citizenship and identifies with England as his home. His accent, education at Winchester College and Oxford, and political career as MP for Richmond and Northallerton reinforce this national identity. Kaufmann asserts that Sunak likely sees himself as English in this sense, a claim supported by Sunak's public life and demeanour.

Ethnicity, however, is a different beast. Kaufmann defines it as a cultural and ancestral identity, often marked by traits like surname, religion, and physical appearance. Sunak's heritage—Punjabi Hindu roots, a non-European surname, and visible ethnic difference—places him outside the ethnic English majority, which Kaufmann ties to the historical Anglo-Saxon and Celtic lineage of England. He also notes that Sunak would unlikely tick the "White British" box on a census, a category encompassing about 80 percent of the UK population, including ethnic English, Scots, Welsh, and Northern Irish. Sunak's own acknowledgment of his Indian cultural heritage, as Kisin highlighted, further underscores this distinction.

The piece then broadens its scope to explore how these categories interplay in modern Britain. Kaufmann points to the fluidity of identity, especially in a nation shaped by immigration and intermarriage. He cites data: half of England and Wales' population have four grandparents born in England, while the other half do not, and many of the latter still identify as "white British." This blurring of ethnic boundaries complicates the picture, yet Kaufmann maintains that Sunak's case is clearer—his ethnic markers align with British Indian identity, not the English ethnic majority.

The article's tone is measured, aiming to cut through the heat of the Kisin-Nelson debate with scholarly precision. Kaufmann avoids taking sides in the emotional fray, instead offering a framework to understand why such disagreements persist. He critiques the tendency to conflate nationality (a civic bond) with ethnicity (a cultural inheritance), a confusion that fuels both liberal assertions of inclusive Englishness and conservative gatekeeping of its ethnic core. His conclusion is succinct: Sunak is English by nationality, British by citizenship, but not English by ethnicity.