Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Trevor Phillips urges greater focus on community integration

He said that despite superficial workplace interactions, many communities still live separately

Trevor Phillips urges greater focus on community integration

BROADCASTER and former EHRC chair Sir Trevor Phillips has said ministers should do more to encourage integration among communities.

Sir Trevor, who in his previous role as head of the Commission for Racial Equality, warned in 2005 about Britain sleepwalking into segregation, said in an interview this week that minority groups (today) were mixing, but only with each other.


“I think that there is a complacency about the extent to which our version of multiculturalism is working,” he told the Telegraph on Thursday (31).

“Go to a town in the north west, Burnley or Preston, or Leicester, and you will find people get on perfectly well at work. But at 5pm they go back to the streets, in which everybody who lives there are people like themselves. Now, none of this is a crime. But it is not consequence free.”

The former Labour party politician is the new host of Sunday Politics Show on Sky News.

He highlighted the need to differentiate between various groups of immigrants, both legal and illegal, as well as asylum seekers and those who cheat the system.

“We are now beginning to treat all immigrants as though they are a single mass: asylum seekers, people who come legally, people who are here because of family reunification, and people who basically just cheat the system. We’ve got to find who the illegal immigrants are – we’re now talking about upwards of a million people – very little effort is going into that, because actually, it benefits quite a lot of people," he was quoted as saying.

“Secondly, once you have found illegal immigrants, they should be treated fairly. Most people of a migrant background will take that view because most of us did it the hard way."

Drawing from personal experience, the broadcaster said it was important to treat immigrants fairly, especially those who arrive in Britain via legal routes.

“I think it’s reasonable that those people resent the sense that people who are young, able bodied and if you’re paying to cross the Channel, well-off, can cheat the system," he added.

Sir Trevor revealed that as chair of EHRC the decision to close down adoption agencies that would not take same-sex couples was the most difficult one.

“The community I come from would wholly support the idea that same-sex couples should not be given children. It was a very unpopular position amongst minority communities. But there are LGBT people who say: ‘What about us?’ I chose the side of equality, rather than my tribe," he said.

In his opinion, when a person takes politics seriously, it's natural that not everyone will like them.

He said, “The people who sneer at politicians are generally people who’ve never made a decision, bigger than what colour socks to wear today. I think that the whole scepticism around politicians is just not right. Most of them try to do their best. Some of them are not very good at it."

Sir Trevor said his belief that a bias against those in positions of authority exists. There's a notion that anyone in a position of power is inherently perceived as negative, and this could hurt democracy, he said.

On his show, he revealed his wishlist of guests, including Salman Rushdie and Jamie Dimon (the boss of JP Morgan) to facilitate discussions on issues ranging from freedom of speech to the cost-of-living crisis.

Additionally, he plans to delve into mental health topics, after the death of his 36-year-old daughter Sushila to anorexia, in 2021.

“There is no day I don’t think about her. She was also, in many ways, my collaborator, and actually doing the show wakes some of that up. She left an imprint on all of us," he said.

More For You

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.

Keep ReadingShow less
Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less