HC Deb 19 May 2003 vol 405 cc641-2W
Mr. Grieve

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the Sikh organisations that have been sent a questionnaire by the Home Office Working Group looking at the relationship between the Government and faith organisations; and what criteria were used in their selection. [114178]

Beverley Hughes

[holding answer 16 May 2003]: My noble Friend Lord Filkin will write to the hon. Member with a list of the 38 national and local Sikh organisations which have been sent the questionnaire.

The list of organisations to receive the questionnaire was compiled from various authoritative sources. The only criterion for their inclusion was that they should make claim to represent the views of the Sikh community in its dealings with Government Departments.

Mr. Grieve

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department why Sikh Gurdwaras were excluded from the mapping exercise to decide on the interface between the Government and faith communities. [114179]

Beverley Hughes

[holding answer 16 May 2003]:The purpose of the mapping exercise is to determine the extent to which faith bodies with a national remit represent their respective faith communities, so that Government Departments can be confident that they are approaching the most appropriate organisations in future consultations. Organisations with a purely local remit have therefore generally been excluded.

However, a number of Councils of Sikh Gurdwaras from areas with large Sikh populations have been included, since we recognise that such Councils can often represent the views of the Sikh community at a national level. It would be helpful to have some idea of how they are constituted and operate.

Mr. Grieve

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria were used to select members for the Home Office Working Group looking at the relationship between the Government and faith communities; and what consultation with faith communities took place upon the selection. [114180]

Beverley Hughes

[holding answer 16 May 2003]: Members of the working group were selected either as representatives of Government Departments with a particular interest in consulting the faith communities, or as individuals from the faith communities with significant personal experience of having been involved in such consultations by Government. The need to restrict the group to manageable size meant that only one such individual could be included from each of the five largest faith communities, as well as two further members to represent the Black-led Churches and the smaller faith communities.

All the faith community members of the group are members of the Inner Cities Religious Council or of organisations linked by the Inter Faith Network for the United Kingdom, or both. These highly experienced bodies are fully representative of the wide range of faith communities living in the United Kingdom. Both were consulted over the membership of the group, and both are themselves represented on it.