Unions demand action to end Muslim poverty
The Trades Union Congress is calling for more government aid to end the cycle of poverty, poor jobs and health among Pakistanis and Bangladeshi Muslims.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber is set to visit an East London Mosque to launch a new awareness campaign to boost social inclusion. In attendance will be representatives from the Muslim Council of Britain and other faith groups.
The visit comes as a TUC report shows Pakistani and Bangladeshi Muslims are more likely to suffer from poverty than white people.
More than 90 per cent of Pakistanis and Bangladeshis are Muslims. They form 43 per cent and 17 per cent of the UK Muslim population respectively.
The TUC claims nearly seven out of ten Pakistani and Bangladeshi Muslims live below the poverty line. This compares to a fifth of white people.
Pakistanis and Bangladeshis Muslims are more likely to leave schools without qualifications, be unemployed, live in overcrowded conditions or suffer from long-term illnesses than white counterparts, the report claims citing government ONS statistics.
Mr Barber said social deprivation and poverty often acted as a breeding ground for “poisonous beliefs of all kinds”.
In a civilised country, he said, people should not have to tolerate high levels of poverty and deprivation.
Mr Barber said he wanted to see more lasting and meaningful from the government than yet more “cheap calls to integrate”.
“We have had too many cheap calls for Muslims to integrate, some of which have come close to asking people to give up crucial parts of their identity,” he said.
“Building a tolerant liberal society where we are all free to express the different sides that make up anyone’s identity will be that much harder when some groups suffer from such extreme levels of deprivation and poverty.”
The TUC report is entitled Poverty, Exclusion and British people of Pakistani and Bangladeshi Origin.
