THE director of Bexley's Council for Racial Equality (BCRE) has told News Shopper the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) faces a uphill task.

Lux Anandarajah says the new organisation, which replaced the BCRE on October 1, will have to cope with a society which is fracturing rather than coming together.

He said: "Diversity, which should be a source of strength, risks becoming one of division.

"Bonds of solidarity across different groups have reduced, and tension between people has increased."

Mr Anandarajah said despite the progress made on many fronts by the CRE, people from ethnic minorities still face discrimination in many areas.

The new body sees the amalgamation of the CRE, the Disability Rights Commission and the Equal Opportunities Commission, and is headed by Trevor Phillips, the former chairman of the BCRE.

Mr Anandarajah said, with the addition of some extra powers, he expects CEHR to continue to champion the rights of ethnic minorities against discrimination.

Looking to the future, he claimed while the BCRE had helped improve the situation in the borough in recent years, the CEHR's new stance showed the council would have to find new and innovative ways of promoting equality and human rights and eliminating discrimination.

He said Bexley would have to promote equality through raising awareness of the ills of inequality and how it affects the economy, public spending, social integration and harmony.

Mr Anandarajah concluded: "In order to advance beyond our usual thinking, we have to also anticipate the unavoidable eventualities of the future, created by rapid demographic changes."

He added: "If we prepare ourselves, structurally and socially, to accommodate these challenges in our planning, Bexley will be ahead of all in the UK."