Portsmouth and Brighton among 'least representative councils for BAME people'

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/26/portsmouth-and-brighton-among-least-representative-councils-for-bame-people

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Councils in Portsmouth and Brighton have been accused by the Operation Black Vote (OBV) pressure group of being among the least representative authorities across England for people from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds.

An analysis of 123 single tier councils shows that nearly one in every four councils – 23% – have no elected representatives from minority ethnic communities. When local authorities with just one BAME councillor are included, this brings the total to one third of councils.

The analysis, compiled by OBV, has been released as political parties prepare for next Thursday’s local elections across 8,300 seats, about half of which are held by Conservatives.

Simon Woolley, the director of OBV, said the figures show a failure to encourage BAME councillors, which can lead to disharmony and mistrust between communities.

“These findings appear to show that some local political leaders really don’t care about representative democracy. Leaving communities without a representative voice is a recipe for community breakdown and discord,” he said.

According to OBV, Brighton and Hove city council, which prides itself on its progressive policies, has no ethnic minority councillors despite a BAME population of over 10%.

Other local authorities with no minority ethnic councillors include Bracknell Forest borough council in Berkshire, where there are 42 councillors and more than 9% of the population is from an ethnic minority background; and Southend-on-Sea borough council in Essex which has 51 councillors, all of whom are said to be from a white British background.

Councils where there is just one BAME councillor include Portsmouth city council, where nearly 12% of the population was classed as BAME in 2011; Solihull metropolitan borough council, where nearly 11% of the population are from an ethnic minority background; and Bournemouth borough council, which has 54 councillors and a BAME population of more than 8%.

There appears to be a “gap” in African/Caribbean representation within the broader BAME category. According to the 2011 census, London is about 13.3% African/Caribbean but OBV’s research shows that those same communities provide just 9% of London borough councillors.

Analysts for OBV examined single-tier local government bodies such as London borough councils, metropolitan borough councils, and unitary authority councils. They did not include county councils, district councils, the City of London or the Isles of Scilly.

As of April 2019, there are 1,026 BAME councillors in London borough councils, unitary authority councils, and metropolitan borough councils, comprising 14% of the total number of councillors.

Labour campaigners in Brighton said the local party has recently acknowledged that there needs to be a change in attitude towards race and representation.

Johnbosco Nwogbo, a Labour campaigns officer in a Brighton ward, said he and other BAME party members have argued that more minority ethnic candidates should be pushed forward.

“I think that many members think of themselves as people who care about racism, and that they are not racist, and that in so far as they can guarantee that they are that, then that would suffice.

“We made representations and told party officials we want people of colour in the room. We want someone who shares our perspective and experiences of racism. I think that has been taken to heart.

“There are five BAME Labour candidates standing in this year’s local elections, and they may well win,” he said.