The findings come after England players received racist abuse following the Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy
A think tank has submitted a report to the United Nations labelling England as “systematically racist.”
Race equality think tank, The Runnymede Trust, coordinated a coalition of more than 100 civil society organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The report warns that the government’s approach to tackling racism risks breaking international human rights laws.
It found that that the government was in breach of a key treaty, known as the ICERD, aimed at eradicating racial discrimination.
Because of this, it concluded that “racism is systematic in England,” warning that upcoming pieces of legislation were cause for “particular alarm” which would “threaten the rights” of black and ethnic minority people.
According to the Telegraph, the report’s authors questioned the findings from the UK’s Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities earlier this year which concluded that the system in Britain was no longer “deliberately rigged” against ethnic minorities.
At the time the report was published by Tony Sewell, The Runnymede Trust dismissed it as a “script that has been written for 10 Downing Street.”
The chief executive of the trust, Dr Halima Begum, called the Prime Minister an “entitled Bullingdon Club brat.”
The Runnymede Trust specifically criticised the Electoral Integrity Bill, which would require voter ID at polling stations, and the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which contains extra stop and search powers allowing for reasonable force without suspicion for ex-offenders.
On Tuesday, Sewell said: “Our report says in the introduction that there is structural racism that exists in this country, but not in that systemic way. My view is that our report stands as it is, and we will robustly defend its conclusions.”
Just this week, the government have come under fire for hypocrisy as ministers condemn the recent racist abuse that the likes of Marcus Rashford suffered in the aftermath of Sunday, despite before the tournament refusing to condemn those that booed players taking the knee.
Tyrone Mings accused Priti Patel of “stoking the fire” of racism on Monday. Meanwhile members of the Tory party have been critical of the likes of Patel for their words and rhetoric in recent weeks.
