Why Sunak Becoming PM Is Not Britain's Obama Moment

When Rishi Sunak was born in 1980, there were no ethnic minority MPs in the House of Commons. It was not until 1987 that the first ethnic minority MPs were elected in the post-war period: Paul Boateng, Bernie Grant, Keith Vaz and Diane Abbott - all four were Labour MPs. As recently as 2001, the Conservatives did not have a single ethnic minority MP.

- Michael Bankole

The 2010 election was a transformative election for the representation of ethnic minorities in the Conservative Party. Under David Cameron, the party made a concerted effort to promote more ethnic minority candidates in an attempt to modernise the party and reach out to ethnic minority voters. As a result, the 2010 general election saw a huge increase in the number of ethnic minority MPs in the Conservative Party from two to 11.

The Conservative Party now has 22 minority ethnic MPs. Across all parties, there are now 67 ethnic minority MPs in the House of Commons, just over 10 per cent of the chamber's membership, and the pursuit of diversity has become an institutionalised norm for Britain's two major parties.

The prospect of an ethnic minority prime minister was fanciful in 1980. In 2022, it is a reality. Given this context, that a British Asian man is now the nation's leading politician is, at least symbolically, a reminder of how far Britain has come regarding the social and political integration of ethnic minorities.