Press Release: 18 February 2009
Race on the Agenda (ROTA) with the support of Voice4Change England have formed the 'Winning the Race' coalition who are backing the call for a meeting with Harriet Harman MP in regards to the single equality bill. The coalition are concerned that key areas that will affect Britain's minority communities will not be addressed in the legislation and are calling upon the Minister to take a lead on ensuring that the legislation is fit for purpose.
"We are hugely disappointed that the government will not be engaging members of the equalities strands which the legislation will effect by publishing a draft Bill for consultation. But even at this late stage where we are only able to influence the wording it is imperative that Harriet Harman MP engage with us and listen to our concerns, this is the single most important piece of legislation to come out for decades."
Dr Theo Gavrielides, Chief Executive ROTA
"The Government will be looking to our Sector to help deliver its equalities agenda. However, if it fails to engage with us on the framing of the Bill then it will be difficult to support policy we had little say in. The Equalities Bill potentially offers huge benefits to this country's diverse communities in tackling remaining inequality across many areas."
Vandna Gohil, Director of Voice4Change England
The Coalition which is growing daily is in support of four key areas of the legislation which need to be addressed, namely enforcement, remedying discrimination in the private sector, positive action and the public sector duty. ROTA and Voice4Change England have called upon MPs and Peers to support the views of the Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities and ensure that there is not a rolling back of equality legislation that has been enacted over the past 100 years.
To join the coalition and support the call for a meeting with the Minister please visit www.rota.org.uk to sign up to the letter and view the briefing paper. For further information, contact ROTA's Chief Executive Dr Theo Gavrielides on 020 7729 1310 or 07850 523 336 or alternatively, email theo@rota.org.uk
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