Whitehall officials called for minority groups to feature more on banknotes as they claimed historical figures such as Winston Churchill give 'limited' view of Britishness

By GREG HEFFER, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT Published: 15:43, 12 July 2026 | Updated: 15:46, 12 July 2026 Whitehall officials called for minority groups to feature more on banknotes as they claimed figures such as Winston Churchill give a 'limited' view of British identity. Civil servants at the Office for Equality and Opportunity, which is part of the Cabinet Office, are revealed to have made the comments in a letter to the Bank of England. They said there should be greater representation of women, disabled people, ethnic minority communities and LGBT+ individuals. It threatens to reignite a row over the Bank axing Churchill and other famous faces - such as Alan Turing and Jane Austen - from banknotes in favour of images of wildlife. The decision by Threadneedle Street to alter the designs on paper money, after 50 years of showcasing historical figures, has drawn claims of 'erasing Britain's history'. The Cabinet Office officials submitted the remarks to the Bank's chief cashier last summer, in response to a public consultation on updating the country's banknotes. The letter, which was obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by The Telegraph, read: 'Historical figures can powerfully anchor public memory but have historically reflected limited dimensions of British identity. 'Greater representation of women, disabled people, ethnic minority communities and LGBT+ individuals would send a strong signal of progress and recognition.' Winston Churhill, Britain's war-time leader, currently features on the £5 note. But the Bank of England is shifting to wildlife imagery on paper money The Office for Equality and Opportunity is led by Labour's Bridget Phillipson in her role as Women and Equalities minister The Office for Equality and Opportunity is led by Labour's Bridget Phillipson in her role as Women and Equalities minister. Senior Tory MP Alex Burghart, the shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said: 'Labour tried to deny any involvement in the cancellation of Winston Churchill and other British heroes. 'But Government officials have been caught red-handed conspiring with the Bank of England to remove them from our banknotes. 'Banknotes should feature the greatest Britons – the historic figures that unite our country. They shouldn't be chosen on the basis of Labour's equality laws.' A Government spokesman said: 'Decisions on banknote design are for the independent Bank of England, not ministers, and it has run its own public consultation as part of its work to periodically update notes so it can strengthen security features.  'Officials engaged with the consultation as part of normal due process – as they did under the previous government during the last review in 2013.'  A Bank spokesman said: 'To select the theme for our next series of banknotes, the Bank canvassed a range of opinion through a public consultation last year; the results of this consultation drove the decision to select nature as the theme. 'The nature theme received the highest proportion of nominations in the public consultation and received positive feedback in Bank-commissioned focus groups.' Earlier this year, four former Tory chancellors - Rishi Sunak, George Osborne, Jeremy Hunt and Nadhim Zahawi - joined a backlash at the Bank for ditching Churchill and other historical figures from banknotes.  But the Bank said the change to wildlife imagery creates an opportunity to celebrate another important aspect of the nation. The planned changes are also said to make it more difficult for the notes to be counterfeited while making security features more distinguishable. It will be several years before the newly-designed banknotes are issued and they will continue to show a portrait of the monarch. The Bank's move followed a public consultation on new designs for banknotes in which the UK wildlife theme received the highest proportion of nominations, at 60 per cent. Architecture and landmarks was a close second at 56 per cent, followed by notable historical figures (38 per cent), arts, culture and sport (30 per cent), innovation (23 per cent) and noteworthy milestones (19 per cent). More than 44,000 responses were received, including from online surveys, emails and designs submitted by schools and the public.