Leading NRI labour MP Keith Vaz
has introduced a bill in the House of Commons seeking a more
ethnically-balanced Parliament in the UK.
The bill will allow parties to create ethnic-minority
shortlists when selecting parliamentary candidates.
There are currently only 13 Labour and two
Conservative Members of Parliament of an ethnic minority
background. No Liberal Democrat belongs to that category.
If the number of MPs reflected the percentage of
ethnic minorities in the UK, there would be 58 ethnic minority
legislators.
"This bill will bring a significant change now, it
will address a serious deficit in our democracy and allow us
to begin moving towards a Parliament that is more reflective
of our society", Vaz said in a statement Wednesday night.
"We need to tackle the problem of inequality in a
number of ways, but this is the only change that will make a
real difference now", he said.
Vaz, an MP from Leicester East, said "We cannot afford
to wait the 75 years it would take at the present rate for the
number of ethnic minority Members to reflect the UK
population. We need to start discussing the needs of all
citizens and we need to start now."