Race Relations Board

The Race Relations Board was established in 1966 following the passage of the Race Relations Act 1965.[1] The act specified that the board should consist of a chairman and two other members.[2] Its remit was to consider complaints under the Act.[3] It dealt with 327 complaints of racial discrimination in 1966.[1] The board was abolished by the Race Relations Act 1976, and its role was amalgamated with that of the Community Relations Commission to form the Commission for Racial Equality.[4]

The first chair of the board was Mark Bonham Carter. He visited the United States and Canada in November 1966 to draw lessons from the experiences of North America in handling racial discrimination. He stated that he viewed the existence of a significant African-American minority in itself as a "permanent historical problem" and opined that problems in the United Kingdom were "new".[5] Geoffrey Bindman, QC was the legal advisor to the board throughout its existence[6] and subsequently with the Commission for Racial Equality.

The Board set up and co-ordinated 7 regional conciliation committees whose role was to deal with complaints of discrimination. These committees set out reach a settlement of the difference between the complainant and the discriminator with an assurance from the latter that the problem would not arise again. However if no settlement was obtained, the matter would then be referred to the RRB and, if necessary, to the Attorney-General. There was no criminal sanction. Four cases were referred to the Attorney-General in the period up to 1968.[7]

References
  1. "Discrimination and race relations policy". www.nationalarchives.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  2. "Race Relations Act 1965" (PDF). www.legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  3. "On this day: 8 December 1965: New UK race law 'not tough enough'". BBC News. 1965. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
  4. "Race Relations Board: Minutes and Papers". /discovery.nationalarchives. The National Archive. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  5. Carter, Mark Bonham (4 September 2016). "Measures Against Discrimination: The North American Scene". Race. 9: 1–26. doi:10.1177/030639686700900101.
  6. Lessons from the 1965 Race Relations Act (PDF). London: Runnymede. 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  7. Sooben, Philip N. (1990). The Origins of the Race Relations Act (PDF). Coventry: Centre for Research in Ethnic Relations, University of Warwick. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
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