Rachael Maskell MP has asked the Government a number of questions about the growing discrimination against BAME residents. Following the murder of George Floyd, she asked several questions about the Government’s response to the events in America and the actions they are taking. Yesterday was the first time since the situation arose that the MP had the opportunity to ask questions in Parliament.
Ms Maskell is deeply concerned that the Government is not doing enough to articulate its anger at the structural discrimination against BAME communities in the US, and she supports the #BlackLivesMatters campaign to see justice served against the police, including the arrest and charge of the police who were bystanders while George Floyd pleaded for his life with the cry “I can’t breathe”.
She placed 4 questions before Parliament and will drill down further depending on the responses she receives.
The questions are:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions has he had with US counterparts about the murder of George Floyd and the policing of citizens in the US?
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the US authorities over discriminatory policing practices against BAME people in the US? What is the outcome of these discussions?
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of (a) stop and search cases, (b) arrests, (c) charges are made against BAME residents by the police in the UK in each of the last 12 months?
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps is she taking to ensure that policing doesn’t directly or indirectly discriminate against BAME residents in the UK?
She has also received information of racially motivated incidences here in York which she is investigating.
“We have to take a zero-tolerant approach to all forms of discrimination. It is an issue that I actively pursue and I am deeply troubled when hearing about incidences across the globe, or here in York. Direct and indirect discrimination against any resident is completely unacceptable, and I will do all I can to root out all forms of racism, sexism, discrimination against LGBTQ+ or disabled people, or discrimination against any other protected group.
“With Parliament returning, I have asked the Foreign and Home Secretaries about the actions they are taking and will drill down further depending on their responses. We have to have transparency across all our statutory bodies, services and within our communities and I will fight for this. With York being a Human Rights city, we cannot wear this as a badge, if we find that our institutions aren’t doing more to promote equality for all the residents. I believe far more needs to be done to address this.”
To read the article on Minster FM, follow the link below:
https://www.minsterfm.com/news/local/3115795/mp-investigates-race-incidents-in-york/