§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they are in favour of amending the Treaty of European Union so as to forbid discrimination based on colour, race or ethnic or national origins; and if not, why not.
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Blatch)The Treaty of Rome already contains certain provisions in relation to discrimination on the grounds of nationality between workers of the member states. The Government have repeatedly made clear their abhorrence of racial discrimination, but they do not consider that this should become a matter for the Treaty of Rome. They see no need for the harmonisation of legislation in this area. They believe that the appropriate response at Union level is to share information and expertise and that legislative provisions should be a matter for individual member states in the light of their own experience and circumstances.