recognise the English as an indigenous people as per The UNDRIP.

Rejected 11 signatures

What the petition asks

We, the undersigned, call upon His Majesty's Government to formally recognise the English people as an indigenous people of the British Isles, with the corresponding protections and rights set out under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

The English are the historic and ancestral population of England, with continuous cultural, linguistic, legal, and territorial presence dating back over a millennium. Like all indigenous peoples they have the right to:

-Maintain their distinct identity, cultural traditions, and institutions;

-Be protected from policies or demographic changes that threaten their survival as a distinct people.

Why it was rejected

It was not clear what the petition asked the UK Government or Parliament to do.

Petitions need to call on the Government or Parliament to take a specific action. We're not sure exactly what you'd like the Government or Parliament to do to recognise and protect specific groups of people. Discrimination on the grounds of ethnicity, nationality or national origins is already against the law.

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/equality-act/protected-characteristics#race

We're also not sure what you mean by indigenous people. The United Nations definition is groups that "have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies in which they live."

https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/about-us.html

We're not sure how this applies to English people.

Timeline

22 Jul 2025	Petition opened for signatures
14 Aug 2025	Rejected by the Petitions Committee

Key facts

Signatures 11

Status Rejected

Rejected 14 Aug 2025

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