Campaign for historic BME figure to appear on new £50 note backed by 200 public figures
Bank of England governor Mark Carney will announce final choice for note in 2019
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Your support makes all the difference.More than 200 people including cultural leaders and politicians have added their voices to a campaign to put a historic figure from a black and minority ethnic (BME) background on the new £50 note.
The Bank of England in November appealed for public nominations for the person to appear on the new polymer £50 note, with nominations closing on Friday.
The final choice will be announced by Bank of England governor Mark Carney in 2019.
Mr Carney has already indicated a scientist will be featured on the note.
In a letter to The Sunday Times, the campaign calls on the Bank to “reflect modern multicultural Britain” by putting a person of colour on a note.
The letter is signed by more than 200 people, including Lord Victor Adebowale, comedian Sanjeev Bhaskar, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, comedian and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig, Channel 4 News presenter Cathy Newman, and Trevor Sterling, chair of Mary Seacole Trust.
Nominations which have been suggested for the first ethnic minority face on a £50 bank note include Britain’s first Muslim war heroine Noor Inayat Khan or Crimean War nurse Mary Seacole.
The letter says: “Ethnic minority communities represent 14 per cent of the British population.
“We do not lack candidates, and arguably their achievements were the greater for having been made at a time when many careers were effectively closed to them, whether through colonial rules, racism, or the legacy of slavery.
“However, no one from an ethnic minority has yet featured on a banknote.”
The group said putting a person from an ethnic minority background on the new notes would show that their contribution to Britain was “valued and recognised”.
It added: “What better representation of ‘global Britain’ could there be?”
Dr Wanda Wyporska, executive director of the Equality Trust, said: “It’s time our black heroes and heroines were recognised for their contributions to our society.
“Now more than ever, we need to celebrate the rich diversity of UK society: representation on bank notes is a great way to do this.”
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