§ Mr. Gordon Wilsonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will take steps to monitor the employment and promotion problems faced by non-white ethnic minorities in Scotland.
§ Mr. AlisonI have been asked to reply.
In its response to the Fifth Report from the Home Affairs Committee on racial disadvantage (Cmnd. 8476), the Government noted the wide diversity of views of the possible benefits to be gained from ethnic monitoring as a means of further equality of opportunity in employment. In the absence of a clear consensus within industry, the Government consider that the right course is to leave it to individual employers in the light of their own particular circumstances to decide whether, and in what form, ethnic monitoring can make an effective contribution to the advancement of racial equality. On its part the Government have decided to introduce an experimental census of the ethnic composition of some non-industrial grades in a specific geographical area in the Civil Service and hopes that the results of this experiment will be helpful to other employers who are considering undertaking statistical monitoring of their workforces.
More generally, my Department's race relations employment advisory service is available throughout the country to assist understanding within industry of the way in which equality of treatment and opportunity can be developed and practical difficulties resolved so as to make effective use of manpower.