The campaign group Operation Black Vote has exclusively told BBC 5 Live’s ‘The Sista Collective‘ podcast that all-black shortlists could be the answer to tackle a lack of diversity in local councils.
It’s after figures gathered by the group suggest 1 in 3 ‘single tier’ local councils in England have no or only one black, Asian or minority ethnic councillor.
Councils with sizeable BME populations but one or fewer BME councillors, include Brighton and Hove, Southend and Bracknell Forest. Seven of the 10 best represented authorities are in London.
Simon Woolley from Operation Black Vote, which campaigns for race equality in politics, told ‘The Sista Collective‘ podcast that local leaders are “failing local BME communities”.