British MPs for separate Sikh ethnicity |
Over 100 MPs of UK have signed an open letter to UK National Statistician, demanding a separate Sikh ethnic tick box in the 2021 Census. The Census 2011 saw around 84,000 Sikhs in UK objecting to the existing ethnic group categories by using the write-in option and specifying `Sikh` for the ethnicity question. UK-based Sikh Federation said that the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for British Sikhs and a representative from the Sikh Federation (UK) were set to meet Iain Bell, the Deputy National Statistician responsible for the Census 2021, to consider their emerging thinking for the census. Sikh Federation press secretary Gurjeet Singh said that 113 MPs had signed the letter. 15 years ago the opposition Conservatives working with the leadership of the Sikh Federation (UK) tabled Early Day Motion 1464 on the same subject that had the signature of an amazing 174 MPs and these included the current Prime Minister Theresa May and David Cameron the former PM. Sikhs are a legally recognised ethnic group and Sikhs have been protected under UK law following a House of Lords ruling in 1983. A number of issues faced by Sikhs ranging from the reporting of hate crimes through to accessing healthcare provision in the UK are not receiving appropriate attention by public bodies as they often only monitor ethnic group categories specified in the Census.
|
|
|
|