§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether their policy in Northern Ireland is to encourage the development of a multicultural society in order to ensure considerable savings on security-related issues; and, if so, whether this policy has been communicated to the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure. [HL5029]
§ Baroness AmosGovernment policy in Northern Ireland in relation to developing a. multicultural society is reflected in the current draft Race Equality Strategy, which provides a vision of Northern Ireland where: "racial diversity is valued and respected, where racism is not tolerated and where we can all live together and enjoy equality of opportunity and equal protection." Any security savings which such a policy gives rise to are welcome but are not its main motivation.
The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure is actively involved in the development of this strategy.
The consultation document on the draft Northern Ireland Race Equality Strategy is currently available in the Library.