Following the 2024 General Election, the Parliamentary Labour Party is the most diverse its ever been with 66 MPs from an ethnic minority background. We have the first Muslim Home Secretary in Shabana Mahmood, and the first Black Deputy Prime Minister in David Lammy.
Labour has been at the forefront of fighting racism and discrimination. Labour’s 1968 Race Relations Act made it illegal, for the first time, to refuse housing, employment or public services to people on the basis of their ethnicity or background. It was Labour who established the Commission for Racial Equality in 1976 to tackle racial discrimination.
In 1987, representation began to change when four minority ethnic Labour MPs were elected in the same election. And in 2002 Labour appointed the first Black Cabinet Minister, Paul Boeteng.
The last Labour government established the Equality and Human Rights Commission to act as a strong independent champion to tackle discrimination and promote equality and set up the Macpherson Inquiry.
This Labour Government is building on our proud tradition of delivering social justice and equality, to break down barriers to opportunity and put equality at the heart of every mission.
We are tackling structural racial inequalities at source: closing unfair pay gaps, raising living standards, tackling inequalities in health and education, and delivering justice to victims of the Windrush scandal.
Our Race Equality Engagement Group, chaired by Baroness Doreen Lawrence, is ensuring the views of ethnic minority people are at the heart of government decision-making, helping to remove barriers to racial equality.
Labour’s work in Government
Race Equality Engagement Group
The Labour Government has established a new Race Equality Engagement Group (REEG) to help break down barriers to racial equality.
Chaired by Baroness Lawrence, the group will help ensure that the views and lived experience of ethnic minority people inform the Government’s decision-making.
Labour is determined to address race inequalities that exist across society – and the REEG enables effective, two-way dialogue to help tackle racial inequalities.
The REEG has held roundtables – including on improving access to finance for ethnic minority entrepreneurs and on the Police Race Action Plan.
Closing unfair pay gaps
The Labour Government is committed to tackling structural racial inequalities across our society and ensuring that equality is at the heart of every mission.
As part of our pans to make work pay, the Government’s Equality (Race and Disability) Bill will deliver on our manifesto commitment to extend pay gap reporting to ethnicity for employers with more than 250 staff.
This will improve pay transparency and shine a light on businesses who are taking the action needed to help close ethnicity pay gaps.
The Bill will also extend equal pay rights to protect workers suffering discrimination on the basis of race and implement a regulatory and enforcement unit for equal pay with involvement from trade unions.
Delivering justice for victims of the Windrush scandal
The Labour Government is determined to put right the appalling injustices suffered by members of the Windrush community.
We will make sure that those affected receive the compensation they rightly deserve, and ensure cultural change is embedded permanently into the Home Office.
Since the election, we have launched a £1.5million advocacy fund, re-established a Windrush Unit in the Home Office, significantly reduced the time taken to allocate claims, and appointed Reverend Clive Foster MBE as the first Windrush Commissioner.
With lived experience and decades of community leadership, Reverend Foster will help drive the cultural change, accountability and the justice the Windrush generations deserve.