Government Equalities

Thursday 5th November 2020 Ministerial Corrections

Covid-19: Disparate Impact

The following is an extract from the statement on covid-19 on Thursday 22 October.

[Mr Dhesi]

Having volunteered in recent months to become a community champion locally, I welcome the additional funding announced by the Minister and sincerely hope that our excellent scheme in Slough will be able to gain some of that funding. The report mentions a SAGE sub-group on ethnicity. What are its terms of reference, membership and programme of work?

[Kemi Badenoch]

The SAGE sub-group is looking at this issue. Not all of our research is original—much of what we have found out has come from that sub-group. Emran Mian has been leading from within that sub-group and is working with us. I am afraid that I do not have the sub-group’s terms of reference, but I will write to the hon. Member on that to provide more information. However, we are very supportive of the work of all community champions, and the work he is doing in Slough is very important. If it is possible, we will ensure that he can access the community champions fund. He will have to apply through the regular process, but we want to do as much as we can to support MPs across the House.

[Official Report, 22 October 2020, Vol. 682, c. 1281.]

An error has been identified in the response I gave to the hon. Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi).

The correct response should have been.

[Kemi Badenoch]

The SAGE sub-group is looking at this issue. Not all of our research is original—much of what we have found out has come from that sub-group. Osama Rahman and Professor Kamlesh Khunti co-chair the SAGE Ethnicity sub-group and are working with us. I am afraid that I do not have the sub-group’s terms of reference, but I will write to the hon. Member on that to provide more information. However, we are very supportive of the work of all community champions, and the work he is doing in Slough is very important. If it is possible, we will ensure that he can access the community champions fund. He will have to apply through the regular process, but we want to do as much as we can to support MPs across the House.