Oldham-born Sir Jim Ratcliffe predicts Labour victory

Minority owner of Manchester United Sir Jim Ratcliffe has said he believes Keir Starmer would do well in the hot seat, as he predicted a Labour election victory.

The 71-year-old, who grew up in a council house in Failsworth but now lives in London, told Sky News that he he had “no questions” Mr Starmer will do a “very good job at running the country”.

The businessman, who is chair of global chemicals company Ineos, explained that while he predicts Labour to win at the polls, he is willing to work with whichever party is in power.

Sir Jim said: “There’s no question that the Conservatives have had a good run over the last 15, 20 years and I think most of the country feels it’s probably time for a change, and I sort of get that, really.”

Sir Jim Ratcliffe pictured running the London Marathon last month (Image: James Hurleston)

He met with the Labour leader at Old Trafford last weekend to discuss the redevelopment of the stadium.

Asked whether his company would donate to Labour, he said: “We’re apolitical at Ineos, we just want a successful manufacturing sector in the UK.

“We’ll talk to either Government about that.”

He blamed the Conservatives’ predicted defeat at the next general election on their implementation of Brexit, which he said “didn’t turn out how people anticipated”.

Sir Jim was a prominent backer of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union in 2016.

He said the referendum “was largely about immigration”, as “vast numbers of people” coming into the country had overburdened the NHS and police.

The businessman also criticised the Tories over their handling of the economy, saying the country needed to “get a bit sharper on the business front” and needs “competitive energy”.

Sir Jim ranked fourth on the Sunday Times Rich List this week with a fortune of £23.5 billion, down two places from last year.