Human rights watchdog ‘should be scrapped’

BRITAIN’S human rights watchdog should be scrapped, a think-tank said today.

The Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) costs millions of pounds, contributes “very little to meaningful equality”, and inaccurately blames Britain for statistical differences between some groups, Civitas said.

But the EHRC said its job was to “start a debate on issues where we could see better outcomes for people suffering unfair disadvantages”.

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Launching its report, a Civitas spokesman said: “Ultimately, abolishing the EHRC itself would not just be a cost-saving exercise. It may well present an opportunity to channel resources into addressing the most pertinent issues holding back equality and fairness.”

The report, Small Corroding Words by Jon Gower Davis, described the commission’s goal of equality as impractical, saying that it wishes that “life outcomes be entirely divorced from health limitations, cultural practices and lifestyles”.

The EHRC “draws attention to the comparatively small differences in life expectancy between all British-born women (80.5) and women of Pakistani origin (77.3), but fails to draw attention to the much larger difference in outcomes between British women of Pakistani origin and women living in Pakistan (67.5)”, Civitas said.

It also accused the commission of refusing Britain a fair hearing, holding it responsible for factors over which it has no control.

It also criticised the pay and expenses of the most senior staff

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