In the run up to the EU Referendum on 23 June, a report of a kind launched at a Parliament event on Tuesday 22 March among MPs and Peers has announced that 57% of the British Sikhs would like to stay within EU, while 12% wants to leave and 31% remains undecided.
Compiled by a collective of British Sikh professionals and academics, the British Sikh Report (BSR) is the only strategic document of its kind, based on quantitative research, aimed at governmental bodies and national institutions alike, which draws attention to the aspirations of the British Sikh community across a range of areas and will be used to help better understand and meet the various needs of the Sikh community.
To reach its conclusion, an online questionnaire was first created by an independent team, using societal and community-based knowledge of issues effecting the Sikh population and over 1,400 Sikhs were surveyed for the report. Academic bodies, third sector organisations and various corporations were then invited to give their input on questions within the report, before it was disseminated to the wider Sikh population.
The BSR also found that the civic contribution by Sikhs is immense, with the British Sikh community donating £125 million each year and volunteering for 65 million hours per annum in total. Four out of five Sikhs (80%) consider caste to be an irrelevance, and almost 60% of British Sikhs believe that immigrants make a positive contribution to society. However, over two-thirds of respondents want to restrict British welfare benefits to EU migrants.
Below is an exclusive article from Jasvir Singh, Chair of the City Sikhs Network, on the upcoming EU Referendum.
"Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the EU or leave the EU?"
Jasvir Singh
Chair, City Sikhs Network
We will all answer that question very soon. It may even be as early as June, when it is believed that the EU referendum could take place. David Cameron has spent the last few weeks desperately negotiating for reforms to the European Union, and he is now trying to get all of the other member states to agree to them. Whatever we may think of the outcome of the negotiations, there is a very real risk that the UK could leave the EU. Britain's exit from the Union, or as the press have endearingly nicknamed it, a 'Brexit', wouldn't just have an impact on our shores. It could lead to the break-up of the EU itself, and the repercussions would be global.
The EU referendum was promised by the Conservative Party manifesto last year, and it is a commitment that the PM has been eager to fulfil at the earliest possible opportunity. According to reports, he believes that a Brexit would be less likely if a vote was held very quickly. The reality, as well all now know, could be very different come the referendum.
We have all benefited from membership of the EU for the last 40 years. Free trade between member states means we have access to affordable food and goods in the UK, whilst over 50% of British exports of goods and services are sold to other member states. The EU is the world's most powerful trading bloc, allowing us to negotiate some of the best deals possible. One in ten British jobs is linked to Europe, and UK citizens have the right to work and live anywhere in the EU. That's before we've even taken into account the impact that our membership has on national security and global influence.
Being part of the EU has meant we can actively defend the rights of others who may be discriminated against in member states, including on issues of race and religion. We are able to lead by example and show how models of social cohesion and best practices in the UK can be used elsewhere in Europe by member states and their public institutions. EU membership has also given us leverage to impose basic standards of human rights and responsibilities on member states, something that we are sadly unable to do in regions such as South Asia or East Africa.
The EU has reduced our mobile phone bills when travelling abroad, prevented a collapse of economies across the continent, improved the protection of our electronic data, dramatically increased levels of recycling, and ultimately given us a platform on the world stage.
If Britain votes to leave, others could follow very quickly. The impact of the current refugee crisis on state resources and the 'open-border' policy has led some member states to question the benefits of remaining in the EU, and those countries may well have their own referenda on the issue of membership before the end of the year. The domino effect of a Brexit could ultimately result in the quick death of the European Union, and the consequences of that could be dire.
From a financial and moral perspective, we are much better off staying in the EU. The dangers of leaving would be uncharted territory for businesses, for communities, and for each of us. The risk is simply not worth it. Instead, we should celebrate all that we have achieved and will continue to achieve by being part of the European Union. We are an integral part of Europe, and as British people of South Asian backgrounds, we should be the ones to lead and shape the European dream for many years to come.
