Doreen Lawrence has told the Guardian that little has changed for the better in the ten years since publication of the Macpherson Report on the Met, prompted by the racist murder of her son. Interviewed for the London section of tomorrow's Politics Show, justice secretary Jack Straw has said:
If you are asking me whether I believe the Met as a whole is still institutionally racist, the answer is no.
He added:
If you ask me do I believe that it's perfect as an institution and that black and Asian people, and indeed women, have the same opportunities in practice as white males, I think the answer is - probably not in some areas...There may still be pockets of institutional racism.
A fair and accurate assessment or an example of Justice Jack at his slipperiest?
Update, 13.05. Just re-found Boris Johnson's assessment of the Macpherson report, published in The Spectator in January 2001. Well worth reading. May surprise.
