A scheme forcing landlords in England to act as border agents actively creates race discrimination, the high court has ruled
‘Our policy is not to sell to coloured people.” That’s what a stunned Mahesh Upadhyaya was told when he tried to buy a house in Huddersfield in 1968. He went on to become the first person to bring a racial discrimination case under the new Race Relations Act. While the case was eventually dismissed on a technicality, the judge declared unequivocally that discrimination had occurred. It was a first and important step towards ridding a nation of the “rooms to let: no coloureds” signs that were commonplace in the 60s.
Fifty years later, Britain is, thankfully, a society far more tolerant of ethnic diversity. But a landmark high court ruling on Friday declared that government legislation is now actively creating racial discrimination in the housing market. The right to rent scheme demands landlords in England check the immigration status of tenants, with fines of up to £3,000 and a potential prison term if they fail to do so. The Observer first reported on this legal challenge last March.
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