Citizenship Committee seeks German perspective on integration and democratic engagement

The first evidence session will start at 10:30am in Committee Room 3A of the House of Lords. Giving evidence will be:

• Dr Henry Tam, former Head of Civil Renewal at the Department for Communities and Local Government
• Councillor Saima Ashraf, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Community Leadership and Engagement, London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
• Mr Stuart Dunne, Deputy Chief Executive, Youth Focus North-West

Questions are likely to include:

• What do you think is the current state of civic engagement in the UK
• Do you feel that the area you work in has better or worse than average engagement?
• What role should local authorities play in encouraging volunteering?
• To what extent are local communities involved in the provision of nationally run volunteering schemes like the National Citizen Service?
• What role should local authorities play in encouraging democratic engagement?
• What role should local authorities play in integration?

At 11.30am, giving evidence will be:

• Ms Mira Turnsek, Senior Official, German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs

Questions are likely to include:

• Can you tell us a little about the scale of the problem Germany faces in promoting civic engagement?
• The German Government has a Strategy to Prevent Extremism and Promote Democracy. To what extent do you think that these two things are linked?
• Is the German naturalisation programme for new arrivals successful in fostering integration and civic engagement?
• The German Government's strategy mentions democratic values, basic human values and the values of the constitution. Is there an official definition of these values?
• Do you have any views on the strengths and weaknesses of the British approach to integration?