Leader of the Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has defended the British identity of her mixed-race children, saying she did not want to live in a country where people questioned whether they were English.
Badenoch, who is the MP for North West Essex, made the remarks during her speech at the Conservative Party Conference 2026 on Wednesday, while criticising Reform UK MPs for what she described as openly questioning people’s identities.
“I don’t want to live in a country run by people who threaten journalists, who call veterans traitors, and debate whether my mixed-race children are English,” she said.
Badenoch said she did not want to explain to her son why some people questioned whether black players representing England were English.
“I don’t want to explain to my son when we’re watching our brilliant England team play football that some people don’t think our black players are English,” she said.
Recalling former England players Ian Wright and John Barnes, Badenoch said their English identity was not questioned in the same way.
“I remember back in the day when Ian Wright and John Barnes were playing, nobody was questioning whether they were English,” she said.
“We certainly didn’t have sitting MPs questioning whether they were English,” she added.
She warned against what she described as attempts to take the country backwards.
“We must not let these people take us backwards. That is not the country we are,” she said.
Badenoch then accused Reform MPs of openly questioning people’s identities.
“Reform MPs are openly questioning people’s identity. They are not like us. We are not like them.
“We are different. We are the Conservative Party,” Badenoch added.