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Formal investigations
The Race Relations Act 1976 gives the CRE the power to conduct two types of formal investigations: named person investigations and general investigations. It must also carry out an investigation if required to do so by the Secretary of State.
Legal advice
Introductory page to the Legal Advice section on this websiteLitigation by the CRE
The CRE has the sole power to enforce the Race Relations Act’s prohibition of discriminatory advertisements and pressure or instructions to discriminate. It may take action in the courts, or order a judicial review.
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This page was last updated on 23 April 2007
The CRE's legal powers
The CRE has statutory powers under the Race Relations Act 1976. These include powers to:
- Advise or assist people with complaints about racial discrimination, harassment or abuse.
- Assistance from the CRE
- Conduct formal investigations of companies and organisations where there is evidence of possible discrimination; if the investigation does find discrimination, the CRE can oblige the organisation to change the way it operates.
- Formal investigations
- Take legal action against racially discriminatory advertisements, and against organisations that attempt to pressurise or instruct others to discriminate — such as employers instructing employment agencies not to send them applicants from ethnic minorities, or companies instructing their workers to discriminate in the way they provide goods or services.
- Job advertisements: guiding principles
- Assist individuals to take judicial review action in order to challenge decisions made by public bodies, including their compliance to the general duty to promote race equality.
- The race equality duty
