It was Henry Ford who said: “Don’t just find fault, find a remedy”. We have all attended conferences and summits which have been ‘more talk than walk and more activity than action’. That is why it is vital that there be real outcomes from the next Commonwealth summit, encompassing the findings of the people’s forum and the parliamentary forum. It …
Britishness
Lord Taylor of Warwick rose to call attention to the concept of Britishness in the context of the cultural, historical, constitutional and ethical tradition of the peoples of these islands; and to move for Papers. The noble Lord said: My Lords, a British national newspaper once asked its readers what it means to be British. One of the responses that …
Multi-cultural Britain
It was Indira Gandhi who said: “You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist.” So in achieving a successful multi-cultural Britain, we must build bridges between our various communities and not walls. For me, the essential message of campaigners such as Wilberforce, Clarkson and former slaves such as Equiano was a simple truth: that there is only one race, the …
Education and Society
My Lords, I, too, thank the most reverend Primate for this timely debate. It was Aristotle who said: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all”. Education should be about understanding, not just memory. The whole-person view of education is clear from the Bible. Christ is spoken of as a teacher many times in the Gospels, …
Racial and Religious Hatred Bill
My Lords, some years ago, in 1990, as the Conservative parliamentary candidate in Cheltenham, I had a rather interesting experience. On my first day as a candidate, an elderly lady approached me and demanded to know what exotic part of the world I was from. I replied that I was from the sunny paradise of Birmingham, just off the M6 …
Exports: Africa and the Commonwealth
In 1974 a choir of schoolchildren sang a song called “Join Together” at the Commonwealth Games. The song became popular all over the world for its powerful lyrics. Noble Lords may be relieved to hear that I will not attempt to sing the song—I can sing it if you wish. No, perhaps not, but the chorus went: And people, black …
Lord Taylor of Warwick, First Black Baron, Finds Inspiration from God and God-Orchestrated Marriage.
When the Queen appointed him as a Lord in 1996, John Taylor became the only Black Baron in the world… amongst Dukes, Duchesses, Earls, Viscounts, Bishops and Law Lords. He was one of the youngest members to ever sit in the House of Lords, and also became the first black Conservative Lord since the 14th Century, when Parliament began. Lord Taylor again made history with his real-life romance between two people and two nations. It is the true story of the first American in 110 years to marry a serving Baron of Britain’s House of Lords….
Living to Learn or Learning to Live?
Church of England Article By Lord Taylor of Warwick It was Benjamin Franklin who said, “An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest“. A teacher at my Birmingham grammar school helped me see that a university education might, in the long term, be better for me than playing soccer for Aston Villa. I am not sure Villa would have gained much …
Easter Eggs Us On To God’s Message
Church of England Article By Lord Taylor of Warwick It was Samuel Taylor Coleridge – sadly no relation – who said: “In politics, what begins in fear usually ends in folly” So much of the political rhetoric concerning asylum and immigration has historically been motivated by fear: fear of the foreigner, fear of those who look or sound different. But …
Luke Whose Talking
Church of England Article By Lord Taylor of Warwick We cannot shake hands with a clenched list. Racial and multicultural harmony can only be achieved through the open palms of friendship, between our communities. Last week Michael Nazir-Ali, the Church of England‘s first Asian bishop, commented that Muslim extremists are hindering such harmony in Britain. He has been criticised for …
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