Religious and Ethnic Groups

HC Deb 13 January 2003 vol 397 cc452-3W

Mr. Wray

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures have been taken to prevent the separation and isolation of minority religious and ethnic groups from the rest of UK society. [88729]

Beverley Hughes

We are committed to ensuring the fair treatment and inclusion of all communities within our society. We are actively working to ensure that where there are divisions along lines of race, religion, class—or any other factor—barriers are broken down, discrimination is eradicated and positive relationships are encouraged.

The Government are committed to social inclusion and equality of opportunity for all. Since 1997 we have done much to stamp out unlawful race discrimination in the United Kingdom. The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 is the most far-reaching reform of race law in Britain for 30 years. And we have some of the most comprehensive anti-discrimination laws in Europe.

The law has also been strengthened on incitement to racial hatred and racially and religiously aggravated offences in the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

We have an on-going dialogue with the minority religious communities to ensure that Government policy is sensitive to their needs and to reassure them that the Government values the part that they have to play in building cohesive communities. We also encourage and support inter-faith dialogue and activity.

Since the disturbances of summer 2001—which demonstrated the isolation of certain communities—we have taken forward a number of programmes specifically aimed at improving community cohesion in England and Wales.

Among other things we have: funded a summer activities programme; set up a new programme of community facilitation; established a community cohesion panel and a number of practitioner groups to ensure that our policies and programmes help rather than hinder community cohesion; published—jointly with the Local Government Association, Commission for Racial Equality, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Inter Faith Network—guidance to local authorities on community cohesion; worked with local areas—including Bradford, Oldham and Burnley to enable them to produce action plans on community cohesion; launched a community cohesion pathfinder programme; and adopted a public service agreement target on community cohesion.