Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance

New Report on Race Statistics in Scotland Launched

With the lack of information on race and racism increasingly recognised, Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance (GARA) has launched its “State of the Nation – Race and Racism in Scotland 2008” report, a collation of statistics and data relating to Black/Minority Ethnic (BME) people in Scotland.

The statistics have been gathered from a number of sources, including Scottish Government publications, academic research, and studies carried out by voluntary organisations.  The document highlights many discrepancies, such as a much increased rate of diabetes amongst BME communities but limited ethnic monitoring by the National Health Service and a significantly higher percentage of BME children in care.

GARA Director Jatin Haria explained;

“Strong statistical data is essential in Scotland if government and its agencies are to truly address the needs of Black/Minority Ethnic (BME) communities.  For example, a report recently published by the Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities highlighted the lack of ethnicity data collection by NHS Scotland as a concern, making it more difficult to adequately meet the needs of BME people.

“GARA’s State of the Nation report seeks to address such requirements and will become an invaluable reference tool for policy makers.”

The document is being published following a consultation period involving many senior experts in the race and racism field.

Former Chair of the Commission for Racial Equality and current Professor in Communities & Race Relations at Glasgow Caledonian University, Dr Kay Hampton commented;

“I wish to congratulate Glasgow Anti Racist Alliance for identifying the need for and producing the State of the Nation document.  By collating all information available on race in Scotland into a single report they have provided a useful benchmark and potentially powerful new tool in addressing the needs of Black/Minority Ethnic communities.

“I am confident that its publication will highlight any concerns that must be addressed and make a real difference to black people.”

Commenting on the release of the report, Minister for Communities, Stewart Maxwell added:

"I welcome the production of this report which brings all the evidence on race and racism issues in Scotland together in one place.

"The Scottish Government believes that a successful Scotland is civilised, fair and inclusive and provides equal opportunity and choice for all its people.

"I hope this report will be a useful tool in reaching this goal and contribute to making race equality a reality across the country."

The State of the Nation – Race and Racism in Scotland 2008 report, which summarises statistics in a number of sections such as health, education, employment, housing and criminal justice, is available online by clicking this link.