Is Britain really the least racist country on earth?
6/9/202643 min
This morning Kemi Badenoch put equality laws at the centre of a new political dividing line, pledging that a future Conservative government would scrap the Public Sector Equality Duty. She says that “modern Britain is the least racist country on earth” and warned that fears of being accused of racism are leading authorities to not intervene to prevent crime.
What is Badenoch’s evidence that equalities duties are pushing “divisive” agendas? When did ‘common sense’ become satisfactory guidance? And why are some parts of the Right now suggesting that white people are the most discriminated against group in Britain?
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsJoey D'Urso· Guest0:00
[digital music] This is a Global Player original podcast.
Jon Sopel· Host0:05
Kemi Badenoch is calling for a return to common sense.
Emily Maitlis· Host0:09
Common sense is a cop-out of a phrase, that I say common sense, and everyone nods, and everyone's thinking- Yeah ... something entirely different.
Jon Sopel· Host0:15
I am absolutely astonished at the number of politicians, including now Kemi Badenoch, who seem absolutely certain about what happened that night with Henry Novak.
Emily Maitlis· Host0:24
So why is she now thinking that this is fertile political ground?
Kemi Badenoch· Soundbite0:29
Modern Britain is the least racist country on Earth. I speak from experience. As a child, I lived on three different continents. I have seen what life is like for ethnic minorities in other places. There is nowhere else on Earth I'd rather be. There is nowhere else on Earth that I would be doing the job that I'm doing right now as a Black woman in a majority white country. It is because we are not racist, because we care so much about equality, that we have overcorrected and actually brought in rules that are actually discriminatory.
Emily Maitlis· Host1:01
That is Kemi Badenoch saying her party would seek to abolish a duty for teachers, for nurses, for police officers to consider the Equalities law because she thinks fear of being racist means authorities are not stopping tragedies from happening.
Jon Sopel· Host1:18
She wants the whole debate on identity politics to change. She believes it seeped into too many areas of our public life. Is she right? Welcome to The News Agents.