BBC News Published image copyrightGetty Images image captionSir Leonard Blavatnik is the richest person in the UK, according to the Sunday Times. The UK's billionaires saw a sharp increase in their wealth during the pandemic, according to the latest Sunday Times Rich List. Their wealth increased by 21.7% over the past year, rising by £106.5bn to £597.2bn, and there are now a record 171 billionaires in the UK. Ukranian-born oil and media magnate Sir Leonard Blavatnik is the richest person in the country, according to the list. He took the title from Sir James Dyson, whose wealth rose by only £100m. Mr Blavatnik - who owns Warner Music - saw his fortune surge by £7.2bn to around £23bn during the pandemic-hit year.