Sir Keir Starmer has said it was ‘offensive and wrong’ for Sir Jim Ratcliffe to claim that the UK ‘has been colonised by immigrants’.
The Prime Minister called on the Manchester United owner to apologise ‘immediately’, declaring: ‘Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country’.
As well as criticising UK immigration levels, Sir Jim also questioned whether Sir Keir was the right man to lead the country in an interview yesterday.
He said that PM ‘may be too nice’ for the job and that ‘difficult’ decisions were needed by those in power to rescue the economy.
Responding to his immigration comments in a post on X, the Prime Minister wrote: ‘Offensive and wrong. Jim Ratcliffe should apologise.’
And Sir Keir’s Justice minister Jake Richards claimed this morning that the Ineos billionaire is ‘hypocritical’ to criticise the Government on migration, because he has ‘moved to Monaco to save £4billion in tax’.
‘One might question whether he is the patriot we need to comment on this issue’, he said.
Sir Jim is also facing a backlash from Manchester United fans. Protest group The ’58 called him ‘a total embarrassment’. The Manchester United Supporters Trust said he was ‘marginalising’ the club’s fanbase.
But there has been some support for his comments, with Yarmouth MP Rupert Lowe saying: ‘Ratcliffe is right. And I respect him for having the balls to say it’, adding: ‘It [the UK] has been colonised by immigrants. That’s just a fact. No point pussyfooting around it’.
Manchester United co-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has said that Britain has been ‘colonised’ by immigrants he says are ‘costing too much money’ in a bombshell interview
The 73-year-old businessman also revealed that he is unsure whether Sir Keir Starmer, pictured in PMQs today, is the right man to be Prime Minister. He has now
Sir Keir’s tweet demanding that Sir Jim apologises
But Downing Street said Sir Jim’s remarks ‘play into the hands of those who want to divide our country’ and called on him to ‘immediately’ apologise.
A No 10 spokesperson said: ‘Jim Ratcliffe should immediately apologise.
‘His offensive remarks are wrong and play into the hands of those who want to divide our country.’
In an interview with Sky News, the Ineos owner said: ‘You can’t have an economy with nine million people on benefits and huge levels of immigrants coming in.
‘I mean, the UK has been colonised by immigrants really, hasn’t it? It’s costing too much money. The population of the UK was 58 million in 2020, now it’s 70 million. That’s 12 million people.’
The 73-year-old businessman also questioned whether Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is the right man to lead the country forward in a bombshell new interview, arguing ‘he may be too nice’.
He added: ‘I don’t know whether it’s just the apparatus that hasn’t allowed Keir to do it or, or he’s maybe too nice – I mean, Keir is a nice man.
‘I like him, but it’s a tough job and I think you have to do some difficult things with the UK to get it back on track, because at the moment I don’t think the economy is in a good state.’
The population of the UK was estimated to have been 70 million in mid-2024, according to the Office for National Statistics, three million higher than that recorded during 2020.
A massive 65,922 illegal migrants have reached the United Kingdom since Sir Keir’s time on Downing Street began in July 2024 – that’s more than under any other PM in history.
Yet the Prime Minister later hit back at Sir’s Jim’s criticism of his leadership. Taking to X on Wednesday evening, he posted: ‘Offensive and wrong. Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country. Jim Ratcliffe should apologise.’
Starmer has come under mounting pressure and this week endured the toughest stint of his 18 months in office amid the scandal which saw Lord Peter Mandelson resign from government.
He faced calls to resign from opposition leaders and, in a damning turn of events, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also pleaded with him to walk away on Monday.
But at a meeting with his Parliamentary Labour Party later that evening, the Prime Minister affirmed that he has no intentions to give up.
Earlier on Monday he had received backing from both Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves which strengthened his position. Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham has also since shared his support for the under-pressure PM.
In his new interview, Sir Jim revealed that he has met with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, who he describes as ‘an intelligent man’.
He added: ‘I think he’s got good intentions. But, in a way, you could say exactly the same about Keir Starmer.
‘I think it needs somebody who’s prepared to be unpopular for a period of time to get the big issues sorted.’
One of Britain’s richest men, Ratcliffe has been widely unpopular with Man United fans since purchasing his stake in the club on December 24, 2023. His group also owns Ligue 1 side Nice after completing a takeover deal in 2019.
He is estimated to be worth around £17billion, according to the Sunday Times Rich List in 2025, making him the seventh wealthiest person in the country.
However, in the last year alone, the Lancashire-born business owner has seen his riches decline by some £6billion, likely due to the expenses of running United.
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Has Keir Starmer lost control of migration numbers?
Ratcliffe has been widely unpopular with Man United fans since purchasing his stake in the club on December 24, 2023
A massive 65,922 illegal migrants have reached the United Kingdom since Sir Keir’s time on Downing Street began in July 2024 – that’s more than under any other PM in history (file photo)
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‘I’ve been very unpopular at Manchester United because we’ve made lots of changes,’ he admitted. ‘But, for the better, in my view. I think we’re beginning to see some evidence in the football club that that’s beginning to pay off.’
The 219 migrants who reached British shores on Sunday, February 8, saw the total who have entered Britain during Sir Keir’s leadership surpass that under Boris Johnson.
One of Sir Keir’s first acts in office after the 2024 general election was scrapping the previous government’s Rwanda asylum deal.
The programme had been designed to deter crossings – and save lives – by sending migrants to the east African country to claim asylum there rather than here.
Labour’s flagship policy is a ‘one in, one out’ deal with France which allows a small number of migrants to be sent back across the Channel.
The Lord Mandelson scandal brought Sir Keir’s tenure in government to the brink of disaster and preceded the resignations of a number of his most senior figures.
After the disgraced Mandelson walked away to ‘avoid further embarrassment‘, the PM’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney handed in his resignation on Sunday.
McSweeney had been influential in the appointment of Mandelson as the UK’s ambassador to the US – a decision he admitted was ‘wrong’ in a farewell statement.
Later, Sir Keir’s communications director Tim Allen quit on Monday to ‘let a new team’ take over in Number Ten, he said.
Sir Keir has come under mounting pressure and this week endured the toughest stint of 18 months in office
The scandal involving Lord Peter Mandelson’s links to Jeffrey Epstein brought the government to the brink
Despite the Labour leader seemingly strengthening his position following a meeting with his party later that day, fresh doubts have since been cast over his judgment.
Sir Keir’s woes deepened amid claims he went ahead with a peerage for Lord Matthew Doyle despite knowing about his ties to paedophile councillor Sean Morton.
He has apologised for campaigning for Morton in 2017 – after the latter had been charged over indecent images of children – saying he believed his friend’s assertions of innocence.
Party chair Anna Turley is calling for Lord Doyle to be kicked out of the Upper House, insisting he did not tell the truth before being elevated by Sir Keir.
No 10 is adamant Lord Doyle’s actions were not known when the peerage was announced on December 10 last year.
However, there are mounting questions about the timeline, with the Sunday Times having claimed that No 10 looked into the issues beforehand.
The situation has been likened to that of Mandelson, with the PM’s allies blaming the vetting system for letting him down.
Asked about the situation during a tour of broadcast studios this morning, education minister Georgia Gould said: ‘I think the decision, the announcement was made on December 10. I think the story was later in the month.
‘But I think the Prime Minister has looked at this afresh, given the commitment that he has made to ensure the highest standards in public life.’
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In echoes of the Mandelson scandal that brought Sir Keir to the brink of disaster, the PM’s allies have been blaming the vetting system for letting him down
In an earlier statement, Lord Doyle apologised ‘unreservedly’ for supporting Moray councillor Morton before the case against him had concluded.
He said he also had ‘extremely limited’ contact with Morton after his conviction.
The Scottish National Party had objected to Lord Doyle’s peerage and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch called on Sir Keir to publish ‘vetting advice and due diligence’ reports provided before his appointment to the Lords.
Labour had suspended Morton after he appeared in court in connection with indecent child images in late 2016.
Lord Doyle campaigned for Morton when he ran as an Independent in May 2017.
Morton admitted having indecent images of children in November 2017.
