Member News
4th February 2010Problems of esteem, aspiration and ambition have to be tackled to improve social inclusion for ethnic minority communities, parliamentarians have been told.
Speaking at the launch of the National Skills Forum report, Step changes in social inclusion, employment minister Jim Knight described drives to increase employment amongst black minority ethnic (BME) communities as "a very important agenda".
"As we need to compete on a global scale, the social justice reasons for not leaving people behind becomes greater" he said.
"We can't afford to leave talented people out," he added. "As a nation we cannot miss out on people's talents."
However Knight acknowledged the role of individual responsibility in social mobility.
"Individuals need to be ambitious and chase their dreams and not be content with the mediocre. People should be willing to raise their level of skill."
Also contributing to the debate, Conservative families spokeswoman Baroness Verma noted that more needs to be done to provide employment opportunities for the BME population.
"These families often don't feel like stakeholders in their local communities," she said. "We have to ensure that young people of all races can compete on an even playing field."
Baroness Verma noted that "education is the vehicle for opportunity and ambition" and that politicians of all parties needed to "up the game" in their focus on the BME community.
And Stephen Williams, Liberal Democrat skills spokesman, voiced his concerns at the lack of social mobility in the UK.
"There are yawning gaps in British society- dependent on circumstances beyond your own control," he said."The key is through education, training and acquiring skills."
To find out more about 'Step changes in skills and inclusion' – with its focus on the BME community, offenders and ex-offenders and people with disabilities – please visit www.skillsandinclusion.org.uk.
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd