New research has found an increase in the number of Britons who believe that a person must be born in the country to be considered truly British, with a significant number tying national identity to race and ancestry. So, are we witnessing the rise of ethnic nationalism in modern Britain?
A YouGov poll carried out on behalf of the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) found that 36% of the public thought a person had to be born in Britain to be truly British — almost double the 2023 figure of 19%. Ethnic and ancestral conceptions of nationhood are the norm among supporters of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which continues to lead in the polls. While seven in 10 Reform supporters said that having British ancestry was a prerequisite for someone to be truly British, six in 10 believed the nation was an ethnic — not a civic — community. More than a third of Reform UK voters (37%) said they would be prouder of Britain if there were fewer ethnic-minority people in 10 years’ time, with one in 10 holding the view that it was important to be white to be considered a good British citizen.












