Press Release - 24 August 2006

Response from leading diversity charity to Government announcement of Commission on Integration and Cohesion

A leading diversity and community charity is welcoming today's announcement by the Government that it is launching a Commission on Integration and Cohesion.

However, the charity, QED-UK, is warning the Secretary of State for Communities, Ruth Kelly, that the Commission must face up to the key issues and deliver action and investment at a grassroots level if it is to successfully tackle community cohesion.

Chief executive of QED-UK, Dr Mohammed Ali OBE, says: "We fully support the idea of a Commission to examine integration and cohesion issues in UK it must tackle the real underlying problems in diverse communities rather than look for a quick fix for extremism and home-grown terrorism.

The key factors affecting community cohesion and integration are fundamentally poverty, deprivation, and low levels of education and employment, underemployment and exclusion from policy and decision making processes. Research shows the majority of Muslim communities suffer high levels of social exclusion and the most acute conditions of multiple deprivation in the UK. Half of all British Muslims aged over 25 are unemployed and one in three live in the most deprived parts of England.

Only by addressing these issues can the government stand a chance of winning the battle over alienation and start moving towards successful integration. Deprivation and vulnerability make communities a breeding ground for extremism – of all persuasions. Solving the problem of successful community cohesion and ultimately defeating extremism lies in improving the standards of education and employment.

The Commission must ensure that it delivers real investment and action in these areas at a grass roots level, rather than provide a talking shop that debates the issues but makes little head way in resolving them."

For further information contact Simon Collister by telephoning 01423 567111 (07971612857 out-of-hours). Alternatively email: simon@cicada-pr.com