The spiritual leader of Catholics across England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, has signed a letter calling on the country to "challenge racial and communal prejudice wherever it is found" following the referendum result last week.
The cardinal, along with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Muslim leader Ali Razi Rizvi, writes that many of the political and economic consequences of the referendum remain unknown, however "in less than a week, increasing reports of inter communal discord and racial hatred are cause for the gravest concern."
Since the referendum result it has emerged that reports of racial hate crimes have risen by 57 per cent.
The letter, which appears in today's Times, concludes: "For all that lies outside of our personal control, every person has the power to conquer their own instinct to apportion blame to others for perceived injustice. Today we call upon every citizen of our great country to recognise personal accountability for their every action, rather than avoiding that responsibility by looking for scapegoats, and to challenge racial and communal prejudice wherever it is found and thus ensure that we are, more than ever, a country united."
