Keir Starmer says Jim Ratcliffe is ‘offensive and wrong’ as he calls on Manchester United co-owner to apologise for saying UK has been colonised by immigrants

Sir Keir Starmer said Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s claim that the UK was ‘colonized by immigrants’ was ‘offensive and wrong’.

The Prime Minister demanded an ‘immediate’ apology from Manchester United’s owner and said: ‘Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country.’

As well as criticizing immigration levels in the UK, Sir Jim also questioned whether Sir Keir was the right man to lead the country in an interview yesterday.

He said that according to official figures announced today, the Prime Minister may be ‘too well-intentioned’ for this job and that those in power must make ‘difficult’ decisions to save the economy, which grew by only 0.1 percent in the last quarter of last year.

The Prime Minister responded to his comments on immigration in his post on X, writing: ‘Offensive and wrong. Jim Ratcliffe should apologize.’

And Sir Keir’s Justice secretary Jake Richards this morning claimed the Ineos billionaire was a ‘hypocrite’ by criticizing the Government on immigration because he ‘moved to Monaco to save £4 billion in taxes’.

‘It is questionable whether it is patriotic that we should comment on this matter,’ he said.

Sir Jim is also facing backlash from Manchester United fans. Protest group ’58’ called it a ‘total disgrace’. Manchester United Supporters Trust said the club was ‘otherising’ its fan base.

However, there was some support for his comments, with Nigel Farage tweeting: ‘Britain has suffered unprecedented mass immigration which has changed the character of many parts of our country. Labor may try to ignore it but Reform won’t.’

Yarmouth MP Rupert Lowe said: ‘Ratcliffe is right. “And I respect him for having the courage to say that,” adding: “This [the UK] It was colonized by immigrants. It’s just a fact. There’s no point in being a coward about this.’

The 73-year-old businessman also revealed he was unsure whether Sir Keir Starmer, pictured at PMQ on February 11, was the right man to be Prime Minister.

Sir Keir’s tweet demanding Sir Jim’s apology

But Downing Street said Sir Jim’s words ‘played into the hands of those who want to divide our country’ and called on him to apologize ‘immediately’.

A spokesman for No 10 said: ‘Jim Ratcliffe must apologize immediately.

‘His offensive words are wrong and play into the hands of those who want to divide our country.’

In an interview with Sky News, the owner of Ineos said: ‘You can’t have an economy where nine million people are on benefits and a lot of immigrants are coming.

‘So the UK was actually colonized by immigrants, right? It costs too much money. The population of England was 58 million in 2020, now it is 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 and suggested he “might be too nice” in a bombshell new interview.

He added: ‘I don’t know if it’s just the equipment that won’t let Keir do it or if he’s just a very nice guy; So Keir is a good guy.

‘I love it but it’s a tough job and I think you’ve got to do some tough things to get things going with the UK because I don’t think the economy is in a good place at the moment.’

According to the Office for National Statistics, the UK’s population is estimated to be 70 million by mid-2024; this is three million more than the population recorded in 2020.

A whopping 65,922 illegal immigrants have arrived in the UK since July 2024, when Sir Keir’s term in Downing Street began; This is more than any other Prime Minister in history.

However, the Prime Minister later hit back at Sir Jim’s criticism of his leadership. He wrote to X on Wednesday evening: ‘Offensive and wrong. Britain is a proud, tolerant and diverse country. Jim Ratcliffe should apologize.’

Starmer has come under increasing pressure and this week has endured the toughest stretch of his 18-month term in office amid the scandal that led to Lord Peter Mandelson resigning from the government.

He has faced calls to resign from opposition leaders and, as a result of the events, Scottish Labor leader Anas Sarwar also pleaded for him to resign on Monday.

However, at a meeting with the Labor Party in Parliament later that evening, the Prime Minister confirmed that he had no intention of giving up.

Earlier on Monday, he had strengthened his position by receiving support from both Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves. Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has also since shared his support for the under-pressure Prime Minister.

Sir Jim has revealed he met Reform England leader Nigel Farage, whom he described as a ‘brilliant man’ in a new interview.

He added: ‘I think he means well. But in a way you could say the same about Keir Starmer.

‘I think he needs someone who is prepared to be unpopular for a while to sort out the big issues.’

Ratcliffe, one of England’s richest men, has been unpopular among Man United fans since purchasing his stake in the club on December 24, 2023. His group also became the owner of Ligue 1 team Nice after completing the takeover deal in 2019.

His fortune is estimated at around £17bn, according to the Sunday Times’ 2025 Rich List, making him the seventh richest person in the country.

However, the Lancashire-born business owner has seen his fortune reduced by around £6bn in the last year alone, likely due to the costs of running United.

Ratcliffe has been unpopular with Man United fans since purchasing his stake in the club on 24 December 2023.

A whopping 65,922 illegal immigrants have arrived in the UK since July 2024, when Sir Keir’s term in Downing Street began; that’s more than any other Prime Minister in history (file photo)

‘I’m not very well-liked at Manchester United because we’ve made so many changes,’ he admitted. ‘But in my opinion, it’s for the better. I think we’re starting to see some evidence at the football club that this is starting to pay off.’

The 219 migrants who reached British shores on Sunday (February 8) saw the total who entered Britain during Sir Keir’s leadership exceed the number under Boris Johnson.

One of Sir Keir’s first acts in office after the 2024 general election was to cancel the previous government’s Rwanda asylum agreement.

The program is designed to deter crossings and save lives by sending migrants to seek asylum in the east African country rather than here.

Labour’s flagship policy is the ‘one in, one out’ agreement with France, which allows small numbers of migrants to be returned across the Channel.

The Lord Mandelson scandal brought Sir Keir’s tenure in government to the brink of disaster and preceded the resignations of some senior figures.

The Prime Minister’s private secretary Morgan McSweeney tendered her resignation on Sunday after the disgraced Mandelson left to ‘avoid further embarrassment’.

McSweeney had been instrumental in Mandelson’s appointment as the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States; In his farewell statement, he admitted that this decision was ‘wrong’.

Sir Keir’s communications director, Tim Allen, later said he resigned on Monday to ‘allow a new team to take over’ the management of Number Ten.

Sir Keir has come under increasing pressure and this week has been the toughest of his 18 months in office

Scandal involving Lord Peter Mandelson’s link to Jeffrey Epstein has pushed the government to the brink

Although the Labor leader appeared to strengthen his position following a meeting with his party later the same day, new doubts have since been cast over his decision.

Sir Keir’s troubles deepened further after allegations he offered a nobility to Lord Matthew Doyle despite knowing of his ties to pedophile councilor Sean Morton.

Doyle apologized for campaigning on Morton’s behalf in 2017 — after Morton was indicted for sexually explicit images of children — saying he believed his friend’s claims of innocence.

Party leader Anna Turley is calling for Lord Doyle to be kicked out of the Upper House and insists he did not tell the truth before being elevated by Sir Keir.

The actions of determined No.10 Lord Doyle were unknown when the peerage was announced on December 10 last year.

But there are growing questions about the timeline, with the Sunday Times claiming No 10 had reviewed the issues in advance.

The situation has been likened to Mandelson’s; The prime minister’s allies blamed the investigative system for failing him.

Asked about the situation while touring broadcast studios this morning, Education Minister Georgia Gould said: ‘I think the decision, the announcement, was made on 10 December. I think the story is later this month.

‘But given the Prime Minister’s commitment to ensuring the highest standards in public life, I think he is revisiting this issue.’

In echoes of the Mandelson scandal that brought Sir Keir to the brink of disaster, the Prime Minister’s allies blame the inquiry system for failing him

In an earlier statement, Lord Doyle apologized ‘unreservedly’ for supporting Moray councilor Morton before the case against him was concluded.

He also said he had “extremely limited” contact with Morton after his conviction.

The Scottish National Party had objected to Lord Doyle’s dominance and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch called on Sir Keir to publish the ‘review advice and due diligence’ reports provided before his appointment to the Lords.

The Labor Party suspended Morton after he appeared in court in late 2016 over indecent images of children.

Lord Doyle campaigned for Morton when he ran as an Independent in May 2017.

Morton admitted to possessing indecent images of children in November 2017.