Cameron: "Britain on the rise" - but for whom?

In his address to the Conservative Party conference Prime Minister, David Cameron said it was the government's mission to unlock the potential of all the British people and build an "aspiration nation". 

He boldly exclaimed that,

"the Conservative party is for everyone: North and South, black or white, straight or gay".

He went on to call for an end to the "toxic culture of low expectation" which he accused the left of applying to the disadvantaged.

In the address, Cameron was unapologetic about the cuts and claimed that the measures had reduced the deficit by twenty five per cent. However, he was forced to admit that economic recovery was happening at a much slower pace than he had hoped.

Cameron declared that "aspiration is the engine of progress", necessary to encourage growth and maintain Britain's competitiveness in the global economy. The Prime Minister recognised that Britain's most powerful natural resource is its people and that

"countries rise when they allow their people to rise".

Yet in Britain today, despite making up 10 per cent of the population, ethnic minorities continue to face discrimination when applying for business start-up loans from banks. The unemployment rate among black university graduates is three times higher than for their white counterparts.

And while the Prime Minister boasted of the fact that since the coalition came to power one million private sector jobs have been created, analysts note that these are mostly part time and that black women have been disproportionately affected by hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in the public sector. The Coalition's early reassurances that jobs lost in the public sector will be mopped up by private companies have simply not materialised.

Cameron maintained that his was,

"not a hard luck, but a hard work story".

He cited his own late disabled father was able to succeed and remain optimistic throughout life, despite the odds.

He made a special effort to recognise the achievements of Britain's paralympians and also spoke about the loss of his own son Ivan, who suffered a disability. His personal experience meant that the discrimination suffered by this section of society was much closer to home. Yet while negative perceptions of disability should rightfully be challenged, the omission of race equality during the 45 minute speech leaves many questions about the government's commitment to equality.

Cameron only reference to race was  whe he said, "radical preachers who spout hatred about Britain" while living on benefits, and praised Theresa May for getting Abu Hamza out of the country.

In terms of education, the Prime Minister stressed the importance of high-quality schools. He did not deny his Etonian background, but instead stressed that, rather than

"defend privilege, I'm here to spread it".

But he failed to acknowledge the institutional barriers erected within the education system which sets many ethnic minorities along the path to failure. Cameron made no mention of how he intends to address the disproportionately high exclusion rate of young black boys or the fact that students with ethnic sounding names can be marked down by 12%.

While Yvette Cooper MP lamented on Twitter that Cameron had shown a lack of respect by not mentioning the police - particularly in the wake of the alleged "plebs" comments made by the chief whip, Andrew Mitchell - for the black community this omission carries far more serious consequences. Black deaths in custody, indiscriminate stop and search, and institutional failure within the IPCC are all serious issues of racial inequality.

While the prime minister optimistically asserted that Britain will rise and is on the right track, the question still remains - for whom? That is a hard truth that is yet to be addressed.

Chizom Ekeh