THE BRITISH INQUISITION
1 March 2005
Three Breckland councillors have been castigated for refusing to take part in an ‘equality training’ programme - covering ethnicity, gender, disability, age and sexual preferences.
Roy Rudling, the town mayor, said that he was ‘proud to be English’ and said that he would be the first to refuse to take part in the programme, which involves spending about two hours working through a booklet and then taking a test by telephone.
He was backed by fellow Conservative, Earl Cathcart, who said that he found ‘the idea that I need to be taught how to deal with other human beings offensive’.
Another Conservative councillor, who was in favour of the proposals in principle, said that as a ‘white, straight man born in Norfolk’, he was ‘one of the most downtrodden people in this country’.
The stand made by the three councillors, which was prompted by a presentation by the consultants, the Grass Roots Group, at a full council meeting has been attacked by all political parties.
The Conservative leader, Cliff Jordan, said: ‘I think we all benefit from this training, but more importantly the staff will benefit and the people out there that we represent will benefit as well’ and that ‘we are doing more than any other council in Norfolk on race relations’.
Robin Goreham, the Labour group leader, said : ‘These few comments we have had illustrate how important it is that all members receive this training’.
The Standards Board for England has stated that the comments the three councillors have made could break its code of conduct. Up to a five year ban from public office could be imposed if the councillors were found to have failed to treat others with respect or brought the council into disrepute.
The so-called Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) has announced that the council would be breaking the law if it did not run the training, and said that Breckland had a legal duty to eradicate discrimination and properly train staff and councillors.
The idea that democratically elected councillors should be answerable to the quangocrats of the CRE shows just how far down the road to a neo-communist totalitarian state the UK has become.
In a few weeks, we will no doubt be treated to the spectacle of Michael Howard asking the CRE permission to raise the immigration issue during the general election (as has been the case for Conservative Party leaders for the last two general elections).
Three Breckland councillors have been castigated for refusing to take part in an ‘equality training’ programme - covering ethnicity, gender, disability, age and sexual preferences.
Roy Rudling, the town mayor, said that he was ‘proud to be English’ and said that he would be the first to refuse to take part in the programme, which involves spending about two hours working through a booklet and then taking a test by telephone.
He was backed by fellow Conservative, Earl Cathcart, who said that he found ‘the idea that I need to be taught how to deal with other human beings offensive’.
Another Conservative councillor, who was in favour of the proposals in principle, said that as a ‘white, straight man born in Norfolk’, he was ‘one of the most downtrodden people in this country’.
The stand made by the three councillors, which was prompted by a presentation by the consultants, the Grass Roots Group, at a full council meeting has been attacked by all political parties.
The Conservative leader, Cliff Jordan, said: ‘I think we all benefit from this training, but more importantly the staff will benefit and the people out there that we represent will benefit as well’ and that ‘we are doing more than any other council in Norfolk on race relations’.
Robin Goreham, the Labour group leader, said : ‘These few comments we have had illustrate how important it is that all members receive this training’.
The Standards Board for England has stated that the comments the three councillors have made could break its code of conduct. Up to a five year ban from public office could be imposed if the councillors were found to have failed to treat others with respect or brought the council into disrepute.
The so-called Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) has announced that the council would be breaking the law if it did not run the training, and said that Breckland had a legal duty to eradicate discrimination and properly train staff and councillors.
The idea that democratically elected councillors should be answerable to the quangocrats of the CRE shows just how far down the road to a neo-communist totalitarian state the UK has become.
In a few weeks, we will no doubt be treated to the spectacle of Michael Howard asking the CRE permission to raise the immigration issue during the general election (as has been the case for Conservative Party leaders for the last two general elections).
posted by erc @ 11:20 pm
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