Tim Worstall

Wales: Hideously White.

Oh, how wonderful:

A Whitehall department
that wants to persuade hundreds of ethnic minority staff to move from
London to Newport is under investigation by the Commission for Racial
Equality for breaking anti-discrimination rules.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) is, at the lower levels, some 38 % ethnic minority. They want to move the bulk of the office from Pimlico to Newport. This would be a bad thing as most do not want to leave London (which is a fair enough argument) and thus the jobs would go to those who live in the Newport area…..which is hideously white and thus this is such a bad thing that the Commission for Racial Equality is investigating.

How did we end up in such a situation? Yes, of course there is rqacism and are racists in UK life and no, we shouldn’t accept or put up with it. But to this stage? Where moving an office is de facto evidence of racism?

Sigh.

In

12 responses

  1. Tim Newman Avatar
    Tim Newman

    As White Irish are classed rather bizarrely as an Ethnic Group, cannot us Taffs also be classed as such? If so, the problem is solved.

    Reply
  2. dsquared Avatar
    dsquared

    I seem to remember an episode of Yes Minister in which Hacker proposed to move key government functions to the provinces and the civil service departments came up with equally nonsensical reasons then.

    Reply
  3. angry economist Avatar
    angry economist

    I just left Scotland because my ethnic minority wife couldn’t get a job there, and felt uncomfortable as everyone stared at her one the bus… so I can really sympathise. Unless you know someone in that situation, or are in it yourself, I don’t think its valid to criticise personally.
    UK’s celtic fringe is terribly white. I don’t think its particularly racism – more ignorant of ethnic minorities than anything else.
    Nonetheless – its a case of ethnic minority staff being asked to leave their communities to join a one that is alien to them.
    Anyhow – if you are in a junior post at the ONS, would you up sticks to move to Wales? I wouldn’t.
    Tim adds: I’m not sure there is anything that would make me up sticks and move to Wales but that’s another matter.

    Reply
  4. Chris harper Avatar
    Chris harper

    Um.
    If the ONS is 38% ethnic minorities (at the bottom??), and the proportion of ethnic minorities in the country is about 6-7% then hiring more white staff “will not promote racial equality”.
    But, but, but, um, well, um.
    I think I’m confused.

    Reply
  5. angry economist Avatar
    angry economist

    Ps – the UK’s immigration map is very useful for informing this discussion:
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/uk/05/born_abroad/html/overview.stm

    Reply
  6. angry economist Avatar
    angry economist

    Interestingly,
    41% of all London’s working age employees are non white british
    To some extent the ONS employment profile matches London’s general population/workforce profile

    Reply
  7. Tim Newman Avatar
    Tim Newman

    UK’s celtic fringe is terribly white. I don’t think its particularly racism – more ignorant of ethnic minorities than anything else.
    I’d say this is something to do with the lack of large cities, something which has always attracted immigrants and diversity.
    For what it’s worth, I’m doing my best to inject a shade of brown into the Welsh people by sunbathing on my rooftop as often as I can. The weather is just starting to cool down a bit now.

    Reply
  8. The Pedant-General Avatar
    The Pedant-General

    This is spectacularly woolly thinking from the CRE.
    Racism is the cause, not the effect.
    To be racism, you have to imply that this was the motive for the move and hence the INTENDED effect, which is clearly tosh.
    Indeed, it seems that the department is trying to persuade ethnic minorities to move with it: its actual actions are the antithesis of how the CRE wishes to protray them.
    Grrrr…..

    Reply
  9. Remittance Man Avatar
    Remittance Man

    As dsquared hints, it’s more likely to be institutional obstructionism (nice socio-rubbish sounding phrase that) than a genuine concern over the minority employees feelings.
    Good God, can you imagine Sir Humphrey slumming it in Newport? He’d rather transfer to the Foreign Service and be posted to Kabul or Lagos.
    By the way? Has anyone asked the Taffs if they want x thousand people of Gromboolian extraction moved to their town?
    I know, I’m asking a “naughty” question. I’ll go and stand in the corner until I’m very sorry.
    RM

    Reply
  10. angry economist Avatar
    angry economist

    or if the Welsh folks want to become stattos for that matter…

    Reply
  11. Phil Hunt Avatar
    Phil Hunt

    In Scotland, Jack McConnell has a policy of moving public sector jobs away from the central belt to places in the middle on nowhere (e.g. Aberdeen). If he’s so keen to move, why doesn’t he do so himself?
    Ditto for Westminster: I can’t see Tony and co moving from London to Wales. Personally I think Charles Clarke should be relocated to Antarctica.

    Reply
  12. angry economist Avatar
    angry economist

    Plus Jack McConnell launched the ‘fresh talent’ initiative – something that when I worked in Scotland in this kind of field, I consistently tried to avoid getting landed with it.
    Basically he wanted to attract more immigrants to Scotland. Despite that fact that much work myself and colleagues had done showed that it was a lack of labour demand for skilled folks preventing skilled immigrants coming to Scotland more than anything else. And then if there were skilled jobs, they were snaffled by Scots who lived in London and England who wanted to return back to their place of birth.
    Aberdeen the middle of nowhere – well it might be, but I wouldn’t fancy buying a house there! triple whammy of having to drive everywhere and petrol costs, housing shortage and high prices, and being up on the east coast. Oh and the funny accents. And tightness. Oh and oil riggers and the ‘economy’ that services them.

    Reply

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