Rt. Hon. Jacqui Smith MP

Diversity Making a Difference Across the UK

Today is an opportunity to reflect on the past, to acknowledge the present and to look forward to the future. An opportunity to see how our diverse society is making a real difference across the UK.

Today is the 25th of October. Not perhaps a date that springs out from the history books, but significant nevertheless.

Forty years ago today Martin Luther King won the Nobel Peace Prize, having shaped a vision for equality with his dream of a future where people were not judged by the colour of their skin, but by their character.

It was that vision that changed a generation’s values on how we treat each other.

And it is the right to have a better life and to be treated fairly that underpins equality. Today I want to celebrate the strength of characters, like Martin Luther King, who are prepared to raise their heads above the crowd and make a difference to people’s lives.

People from diverse cultural backgrounds are making a contribution in all areas of our society.

When we look back through history, black people have been associated with the arts and business in this country since the 18th century. People such as Olaudah Equiano the celebrated author. A former slave, he went on to become an intrepid explorer with Horatio Nelson and was the first ever black person to be employed by the British Government.

Or perhaps Ignatius Sancho, born on a slave ship, but who became a major literary celebrity in Georgian London. Interestingly in 1773 he opened a corner shop on the site where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office now stands. Perhaps an early demonstration of the entrepreneurial spirit we find so often in Black and Asian communities across the UK.

More recently, the rich influence of creativity and culture, which was to change the shape of modern Britain, came with the arrival of people from the West Indies in the 50s and Asia in the 60s.

You may be interested to know that in 1965 the BBC broadcasted a programme entitled ‘Making Yourself at Home’ which was designed to help people who had recently moved to Britain from India and Pakistan cope with everyday situations.

It offered informal language lessons in English, gave advice on schools and how to settle into the community. Its message was:

“In the world of today we all need to know a great deal more about each other. This is one small contribution towards showing you something of ourselves and the society in which you live.”

Contrast that with programmes today.

The BBC’s Asian Network has been an incredible success and appeals to both Asians and non-Asians alike. Earlier this year the first Asian radio soap, Silver Street, was aired portraying modern Asian life and tackling real issues that British Asians can relate to.

It has already broadcast its 100th episode and is gaining momentum and popularity all the time. How long until Silver Street replaces Albert Square I wonder?

And of course great British/Asian films such as Bend it like Beckham and Bride & Prejudice are not only making a significant contribution to our balance of payments, but also raising important cultural issues.

The same can also be said of the black music industry. Jamelia’s poignant and moving song ‘Thank You’ about her own experiences of domestic violence, used music as the medium to convey this important message to many women suffering in silence – even to the point where it stopped a woman taking her own life and encouraged her to seek help.

But it’s not just the high profile contributions that are important.

Throughout the UK more than a quarter of a million minority ethnic enterprises are contributing around £13 billion a year to the British economy.

And we want to encourage more female entrepreneurs. So next month, Business Link will be launching the ‘Exploring Enterprise Toolkit’ specifically designed for minority ethnic women.

In simple terms this toolkit is an A-Z manual of starting a business and includes a 12 month programme of workshops, mentoring, seminars and learning opportunities to give the very best start to individuals who either have a business idea or have just started their business.

An example of the people we are trying to help is Sujata Jolly of Depeche Mode Laboratories. Having worked as a research and development scientist for companies such as ICI and Rolls Royce Aerospace, Sujata set up her own business to research and develop effective solutions for health and skin-related problems. Using a unique blend of Eastern and Western medicine, Sujata’s treatments have been key in speeding up the healing process and in particular helping many diabetics recover from debilitating leg ulcers, when the alternative would have been amputation.

Unfortunately Sujata cannot be with us today as she is furthering her business by exhibiting at Excel – launching new and innovative products to improve people’s lives.

Despite so much entrepreneurial spirit, the reality is that there are still a great many disadvantaged people, living in deprived neighbourhoods across the UK who need our help.

Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Black Caribbeans are more likely than any other ethnic group to live in areas with the highest levels of deprivation.

And some of the least advantaged areas such as Tower Hamlets, Brent and Newham are now ethnic majorities.

Unemployment rates for ethnic minorities are 2-3 times higher than white communities. This is despite a greater number of ethnic minority students continuing with further education compared to white students.

And African Caribbean job candidates are four times more likely to be refused a job interview than a white person.

These statistics are not acceptable and with the ethnic minority population growing at an increasingly faster rate, we need to look at ways to make long lasting changes.

One way forward is through sustainable economic development and encouraging enterprise. The government is committed to working with local communities to transform our regions.

Programmes such as the Phoenix Development Fund offer a range of measures to improve access to finance and business support. Since it was started in 2000, it has funded nearly 100 projects assisting 80,000 clients – many of whom are women from minority ethnic backgrounds.

And Job Centre Plus has appointed new Specialist Employment Advisors who offer support and practical advice to employers on race equality issues and work with them to develop ways to ensure that their recruitment practices reach a diverse range of potential employees. In Leicester these employment advisers secured 100 vacancies from an employer they met at a Mela Festival.

Much of this work is being done in partnership with the Regional Development Agencies, who play a major role in driving the Government’s economic agenda.

They were set up to make sustainable improvements in the economic performance of all the English regions and, over the long term, reduce the persistent gap in growth between regions.

They work closely with business and the local communities to find joint solutions that take account of everyone’s needs, providing funding and support for a wide range of projects in their region.

They are there to help you. But they too need help.

Each of the 8 RDAs across England has a board of 14 people. It is drawn from a wide variety of backgrounds – predominantly business but also education, the voluntary and community sector, local government and trade unions. It is extremely important that the board reflects the society it serves – how else can it properly fulfil its primary role to promote prosperity and change within the region in a way that is truly representative?

Current representation is not diverse enough and we really need people, just like you, to apply for board membership.

But what are the rewards of a public appointment such as the RDA Board?

Well it means you will have the chance to put something back into your community, to make a lasting difference and secure a brighter future for your region.

But don’t just take my word for it, hear from someone who has actually done it.

Adeeba Malik, Deputy Chief Executive of QED in Bradford became the youngest ever RDA Board Member in 1998 at the age of 31. Adeeba believes the work is both rewarding and stimulating and a real opportunity to make a difference. Although the work is supposed to be 2 days per month, she regularly exceeds that. Not because she has to, but because she wants to.

Can you see yourself in her shoes, making a difference in your region? If so please visit Gail on the RDA stand.

In a moment I am going to hand over to Brenda King, Chair of African Caribbean Diversity. Brenda is going to tell you some of the exciting and valuable work that her organisation is doing to improve the employment prospects of young African Caribbean boys and girls.

But there are many of you here who are also doing incredible work. I am delighted that Doreen Lawrence is here, who has done so much to promote equality of opportunity and good race relations. And people like Sonia Brown – uniting black women to achieve together and Pinky Lilani who founded the Asian Women of Achievement Awards and whom we are pleased to have as a diversity consultant at the Women & Equality Unit.

For all of you here who are making a difference across the UK I thank you and urge you to continue to challenge, communicate and change perceptions.

I look forward to the time where every workplace is a fairer place, where discrimination is outlawed, equality of opportunity is available to all and dignity and respect are not paid lip service but upheld. Not because legislation tells us to, but because it is the right thing to do.

And to echo the words of Martin Luther King:

“Let people not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the strength of their character”.

That’s our vision. Let’s work together to make it a reality.

I would now like to hand over to Brenda King to say a few words.