UK to assess racism in police ranks

By OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

London

Oct. 7: British home secretary Jacqui Smith has ordered a nationwide assessment of how ethnic minority officers are treated by the police forces in England and Wales after the Metropolitan Black Police Association, the representative body of ethnic police employees, started its boycott of the service to protest against institutional racism. They started discouraging new recruits from joining the police. Ms Smith wants fast results — she has asked newly-appointed home office minister in charge of police Vernon Coaker to carry out a rapid, two-week examination of the recruitment and promotion prospects of minority officers in police forces.

"The police service is determined to offer fair and equal opportunities to all its members, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity or background. Since the publication of the Macpherson report they have come a long way. Over the last 10 years minority ethnic representation in the police service has doubled," Ms Smith told the BBC News.

"However, we accept there is a long way to go, and we are determined to work with the police to achieve that," she added

"Nationally I am working closely with the police to continue to support them recruit people from all backgrounds," she added.

Commenting on the campaign by the Metropolitan Black Police Association, Ms Smith said she was disappointed by the boycott and added that the advertising campaign to discourage ethnic minorities from applying for police posts was unhelpful.

Mr Coaker will work with police representatives, including the Police Federation, Superinten-dent’s Association and Acpo while working on his report.

The Metropolitan police has been hit by claims of racism by ethnic minority officers in recent months and relations between ethnic minority officers and the police force have been deteriorating.

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Mayor backs down on probe

London, Oct. 7: London mayor Boris Johnson has been forced to revise his inquiry into racism in Met police after a frosty reception from the force’s governing body.

On Monday, Mr Johnson was told that the inquiry he envisaged was expensive and unnecessary. —ANI