BRONWYN McGahan has called for a racial equality strategy to be “urgently” agreed by First Minister Peter Robinson and submitted for public consultation.

The Fermanagh-south Tyrone MLA was speaking as Members passed a motion recognising Refugee Week and Community Relations Week.

She told the House: “Refugees come here not out of choice but because they have been forced out of their own countries for many different reasons, including social, political and economic, and they end up in different countries.

“These refugees face many problems, including racism and isolation. They have difficulty in finding out information on many things that we take for granted, such as how to access benefits and medical treatment and how to have children enrolled in schools,” she said.

Ms. McGahan said sectarianism “ranks alongside racism as a hate crime that we must eradicate”. “Again, we need to demonstrate through actions that we are sincere in tackling this scourge on our communities. While immigration is an excepted matter, nevertheless Departments have responsibilities to provide for communities, their economic development and the elimination of poverty,” she said.

UUP leader Mike Nesbitt had proposed the motion calling for the Assembly to support Refugee Week and Community Relations Week “particularly in relation to their shared aim of facilitating positive encounters between diverse cultures in order to encourage greater understanding, overcome hostility and build a shared society”.