Inclusive Society

Viscount Thurso Excerpts

Wednesday 14th April 2021 Grand Committee

[Viscount Thurso (LD) [V]]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Lister, on securing this debate on a matter of what should be, and I hope is, vital national importance: the need for positive policies to increase social inclusion post Covid. In addition to the many excellent points which she made in her speech, the effects of the pandemic have brought into sharp relief a trend that has been growing for a number of years: the increasing divisiveness in societies in many countries, with growing populism and nationalism, which create barriers to inclusion.

One of the first debates I took part in in your Lordships’ House in 1996 was on social cohesion and wealth creation. I have long believed that a just and inclusive society is essential for social cohesion and fair wealth creation, which are the hallmarks of a civilised society. In the short time available I want to make three quick points: first, on the importance of primary education; secondly, on the danger of the widening disparity in earnings between those at the top and those at the bottom; and, thirdly, on the increasing intolerance in society being reinforced by social media.

My noble friend Lady Benjamin, in a powerful contribution, underlined the challenges facing children. Divisiveness and prejudice are learned behaviours. Young children are naturally inquisitive and inclusive. That is why I believe that investment in early years education, particularly primary schools, is so important for creating the right opportunities for their future. My son teaches in a primary school in an area with many disadvantaged children. He has often told me that his biggest difficulties stem from poor parenting inherited from previous generations. Breaking that chain and encouraging inclusivity in young children, which requires investment, would be a major contributor to increasing opportunity and lowering prejudice.

Secondly, many in this debate will know of the Gini coefficient and its relevance to inclusivity. I have expressed in previous debates my real concern about the disparity between those at the bottom of pay scales and those at the top, and it is a gap that is getting larger with the years. Further, it now appears that the gig economy is reinforcing rather than improving that trend. This area deserves our serious attention.

However, the main point I wish to make in this debate is the need for tolerance to maintain an inclusive society. The relentless drive for all things to be online certainly brings many conveniences—indeed, our proceedings today would not be possible without them—but as the noble Baroness, Lady Drake, and the noble Lord, Lord Whitty, observed, for many disadvantaged households it amplifies their challenges. It is those households where children have been unable to get online learning in lockdown and those households who cannot access online support.

All the definitions of an inclusive society include the need to build trust and the need for mutual understanding. I have always believed that tolerance is one of the most important values in all truly liberal democracies. For me, tolerance is far more of an active value than simply being bothered by what others do; it demands an understanding of what others believe in order to create an active desire to tolerate their views and beliefs, ensuring plurality of thought in the great market of ideas.

Internet media outlets feed like opinions and bar differing opinions, reinforcing held views which are translated through social media into silos of mutual intolerance. The web cannot be uninvented but its effects need to be understood and regulated. Perhaps we should be teaching that in our primary schools.