As part of IRMO’s role as Chair of the Coalition of Latin Americans in the UK (CLAUK), we were pleased to participate in a parliamentary roundtable hosted by Neil Coyle MP to discuss the recognition of Latin Americans as an ethnic category in the UK census categories.

The roundtable brought together MPs, community organisations and stakeholders to reflect on the consultation led by the Government Statistical Service and the Office for National Statistics on the future of ethnicity data standards. The consultation focuses on identifying user needs for additional response options in a harmonised ethnicity standard.

In the lead-up to the consultation deadline, CLAUK mobilised a wide range of organisations and community members to submit responses, highlighting the importance of including “Latin American” as a recognised ethnic category. IRMO also submitted evidence drawing on our frontline work and research.

The event, attended by Neil Coyle MP, Helen Hayes MP, Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP and Ben Coleman MP, provided an important opportunity to bring this issue directly into Parliament. We emphasised how the lack of recognition in official data contributes to the invisibility of Latin American communities and creates barriers to accessing services, funding and policy attention.

This work builds on CLAUK’s long-standing campaign for recognition, which aims to ensure that Latin Americans are visible in national statistics and, as a result, better reflected in public policy and service provision.

We look forward to the outcome of the consultation later in 2026 and will continue working with partners to advocate for meaningful recognition of Latin American communities in the UK.