Feb 6
Congestion Charge racist?
Ken Livingstone is second to none in his enthusiasm for political correctness. But, in the sweetest of ironies, even he has now fallen victim to the “inclusiveness” agenda to which he gives such prominence.
Red Ken recently ordered Greater London Authority staff to attend an “equalities training” course run by the 1990 Trust – an organisation “protecting and pioneering the interest of Britain’s Black Communities”.
However, the trust’s director, Karen Chouhan, used her lecture to attack Livingstone’s flagship policy of congestion charging.
“We were gobsmacked, to be honest,” says one GLA employee. “Chouhan solemnly informed us that congestion charging is indirectly racist. Her argument was that traffic has been displaced to places like Brixton, which have high ethnic minority populations.
“She added that a number of Asians’ livelihoods are under threat because small shopkeepers – most of whom are Asian – are in danger of going out of business.”
Chouhan has a long history in the race relations industry. She used to lecture at De Montfort University on Black Studies and is also involved with the National Black Caucus, the Race and Ethnic Diversity Research and Policy Partnership and the Coalition Against the Destitution of Asylum Seekers.
Her current post at the 1990 Trust was previously held by Lee Jasper, Livingstone’s chief adviser on race relations issues.
Jasper himself was unavailable for comment yesterday, and a GLA spokesman refused to answer questions about Ms Chouhan’s comments, merely insisting: “There is no suggestion that the charge impacts disproportionately on any racial community in London.”
This bit of schadenfruede comes from London Spy. Of course, when the Tories told Ken that the congestion charge would just hurt poorer people, he ignored them. Wonder if he is going to listen now that someone from the “race industry” has told him off.
