UK human rights watchdog to probe 'entrenched inequalities' exposed by Covid-19

THE Equality and Human Rights Commission has initiated an inquiry into the UK’s “long-standing, entrenched racial inequalities” that have been highlighted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The watchdog said it would conduct a thorough study and propose urgent measures to tackle race inequalities.

The EHRC’s chairman, David Isaac, said the current scenario was “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to tackle long-standing entrenched racial inequalities”.

“We intend to use our statutory powers to address the loss of lives and livelihoods of people from different ethnic minorities,” he said.

“Only by taking focused action to tackle race inequality across Britain will we become a fair country.”

The EHRC's move followed the Equalities Office announcement on a review into the government’s Covid-19 response, taking into account inequalities in coronavirus infection and death rates.

A recent Public Health England review had confirmed that BAME people were more likely to die of Covid-19.

It was widely panned for not throwing up comprehensive explanations or action points, forcing the government to order another review.

According to Isaac, the report failed to "go wider to address inequalities that exist".

The British Medical Association’s chair, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, called the PHE review a “missed opportunity” to initiate actions to tackle inequality.

“It is a statistical analysis, which while important, gets us no closer towards taking action that avoids harm to BAME communities,” he said.

Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch, who is leading the government review, admitted that the PHE review offered “incomplete data”, and “much more needs to be done to understand the key drivers of the disparities identified”.

She said the government was “rightly taking seriously the initial findings from the PHE report”.

"That is why I am now taking this work forward, which will enable us to make a real difference to people’s lives and protect our communities from the impact of the coronavirus."

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, said he was “pleased” that “crucial” action was being taken.

“Covid-19 has exposed the major health inequalities that exist in our society, and has laid bare the negative impact it continues to have on the lives of BAME Londoners, including in employment and immigration status,” he had said in a letter to the EHRC.

He urged the watchdog to investigate if “enough was done to protect BAME Londoners who are being hardest hit by the pandemic”.

Shadow women and equalities secretary Marsha de Cordova accused the government of “consistently failing to take action to save BAME people’s lives during this pandemic”.

“Now is the time to take steps to tackle systemic racism, discrimination and injustice in Britain,” she said.

Isaac told The Guardian the he had written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson on March 19, asking the government to “consider carefully the specific impacts [lockdown restrictions] may have on groups who are already disadvantaged in other ways”. He, however, did not get a reply.

The human rights chief added that equality was not being treated as “a top-table issue at the moment”.

“The focus on equality has not been escalated in way that the severity of the situation requires,” he said,

Isaac pointed out that the government was bound by the Equality Act to provide details on the steps taken to address concerns around protected groups before implementing policies.

“Considering the equality impact of policy decisions is not an optional extra – it’s integral to getting us out of this crisis, but sadly it’s being ignored,” he said.

Reports said the EHRC was considering to use “legal powers to force the government to act”.