§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What measures they are taking to curb racially motivated attacks and violence in Northern Ireland; and whether they agree with the Commission for Racial Equality that racist attacks are approximately one-third more prevalent in Northern Ireland, as compared with England and Wales. [HL756]
92WA
§ Baroness AmosThe Northern Ireland Office, the Northern Ireland departments and the Police Service of Northern Ireland are taking a range of actions. These include measures aimed at curbing and mitigating the impact of racist incidents through education, housing, health and social policy, as well as through law enforcement.
For example, the Community Safety Strategy, being implemented through the Community Safety Unit of the Northern Ireland Office, identified Key Issue 6: Offences Motivated by Prejudice and Hatred as a central theme in making Northern Ireland a safer place for all its citizens. Specifically, it seeks to reduce the levels of crime motivated by sectarianism, and to promote and enhance the safety of minority ethnic residents. Currently, it is facilitating a working group of relevant Northern Ireland departments, voluntary and statutory organisations which aims to establish a clear framework for the recording and monitoring of racial incidents. It is hoped to bring forward such an agreed framework by the spring 2004. Also, within its community safety grant programme, the Challenge Competition, it has provided funding towards four projects which have a central theme of countering prejudice and hatred, at a total value of £273,255.
In addition to these initiatives, the Government will publish shortly for consultation, draft proposed legislation for Northern Ireland aimed at tackling racially motivated offences. The proposed draft order will require sentencers, where offences are aggravated by such hostility, to treat racial and religious hostility as an aggravating factor when sentencing. (The legislation will also cover offences motivated by hatred of sexual orientation.) The proposal will also increase maximum sentences available for certain specified, mainly violent, offences including where hostility based on racial, religious or sexual aggravation is proven.
Direct comparisons of the prevalence of racist attacks across different jurisdictions can be difficult to make, but it would appear that racist attacks are more prevalent in Northern Ireland. Any attacks are unacceptable. The Government are committed to creating a safer and more tolerant Northern Ireland.