The Bank of England has launched a public consultation inviting people to help choose the native wildlife that is to feature on its next series of banknotes, replacing historical figures including Sir Winston Churchill.
The central bank has published a shortlist of 18 species, drawn up with a panel of wildlife experts, that could appear on the £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes.
The animals fall into three groups, covering mammals, birds and a mixed category of amphibians, insects and fish. Each note is to carry a single creature and people can pick up to two options from each group.
Among the options are the bottlenose dolphin, red fox, Atlantic puffin, barn owl, basking shark and buff-tailed bumblebee.
The consultation runs until July 3, 2026. The Bank said Governor Andrew Bailey would make the final decision after reviewing the responses, with the outcome due by the end of 2026.
It added that the animals attracting the most votes might not necessarily be picked, as each note has to be easy to tell apart.
Bank of England chief cashier Victoria Cleland said she hoped the public would enjoy taking part. “The shortlisted animals demonstrate the rich variety of wildlife we have to celebrate in the UK,” she said.
The move marks a break with more than 50 years of featuring prominent Britons. The current notes carry Churchill on the £5, novelist Jane Austen on the £10, painter JMW Turner on the £20 and codebreaker Alan Turing on the £50. The portrait of the monarch is to remain.
The Bank has said the redesign is driven mainly by the need to tackle counterfeiting, though the plan has drawn criticism. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called it “the definition of woke”, while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said removing Churchill amounted to “erasing our history”.
