Equalities Minister fails to name single backer of Government race report when challenged

24 May 2021, 14:14

Equalities Minister "can't remember" who backed Government race report

The Equalities minister Liz Truss said she could not recall anybody other than the Prime Minister who backed the findings of a government commissioned report into race equalities which was published in the wake of the death of George Floyd

Nick Ferrari challenged the Equalities minister Liz Truss during the regular Call the Cabinet phone-in to name a person outside of government who supported the findings of the controversial Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities report chaired by Dr Tony Sewell CBE.

Ms Truss said the report was “was very important in setting a new agenda for how we’re dealing with racial equality in Britain” but when asked by Nick to name somebody who supported it she responded saying that she "can't remember" adding, "I'd be guessing if I did".

Colette in Enfield called in to ask what the government had achieved in tackling racial inequalities in Britain in the wake of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and said that she thought the Sewell report had been "trashed comprehensively".

Ms Truss defended the review, saying that it had made "some very important points" and that further equality data would be published in July.

READ MORE: 'Britain not rigged against ethnic minorities': landmark report sparks major backlash

David Lammy's stirring response to race report

The report, published in March, said that Britain is a "model to other countries for diversity" because of successes in areas such as education, and a shrinking ethnicity pay gap.

However the 264-page report found that overt racism persists in the country, particularly online, and that more work still needs to be done.

In the foreword of the full report, chair Dr Tony Sewell CBE said Britain is no longer a place "where the system is deliberately rigged against ethnic minorities."

The Former EHRC Commissioner Lord Simon Woolley spoke to Nick earlier in the year and described the report as a "missed opportunity".

Former EHRC Commissioner Lord Simon Woolley brands the UK's race report "deceitful, divisive and retrograde", backing calls for the PM to reject its findings.