British government ministers have called for "heads to roll" at Yorkshire County Cricket Club over its handling of a report that found former player Azeem Rafiq had been the victim of "racial harassment and bullying".<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In September, Yorkshire issued "profound and unreserved apologies" to Rafiq, 30, but subsequently said they would take no disciplinary action against any of their staff.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The ESPNcricinfo website on Monday published what it said were details of the report, including an unnamed current senior player's admission that he had regularly used a racially abusive term in reference to Rafiq.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
That was deemed to be "in the spirit of friendly banter".<\/p>\r\n\r\n
But British Health Secretary Sajid Javid on Tuesday demanded the England and Wales Cricket Board take action, referring to the term used against Rafiq.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"'Paki' is not banter," he tweeted. "Heads should roll at Yorkshire CCC. If @ECB_cricket doesn't take action it's not fit for purpose."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries, whose brief includes sport, said the allegations had not been taken seriously enough.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"Azeem Rafiq's treatment after the racism he faced was disgusting, and the investigation that followed only makes it even worse," she tweeted.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"The @ECB_cricket investigation must be swift and fully transparent. Racism must be confronted, and NEVER written off as just 'banter'."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
A spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said such racist language should "never be used in any context".<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"These are very serious allegations which have clearly had a significant impact on Azeem Rafiq and it's important they are investigated thoroughly and quickly," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Rafiq, who had two spells at Yorkshire, said he had told the Professional Cricketers' Association and the ECB that the issue needed to be taken out of Yorkshire's hands.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"No one believed me, no one listened everyone tried to protect themselves and left me all alone to fight," he tweeted. "TIME FOR THE FULL TRUTH."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The ECB said in a statement it would conduct a "full regulatory process" and had hired a senior lawyer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We are conscious about the length of time that Azeem has waited for resolution and the toll that must be taking on his wellbeing and that of his family," it said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We are sorry that, as a sport, this has not yet been resolved.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We will conduct a full regulatory process that is fair to all parties, but also ensure this happens as quickly as possible."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In a further development, lawmakers on the cross-party Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee in parliament want to quiz Yorkshire chairman Roger Hutton over the club's handling of the Rafiq issue.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
DCMS chairman Julian Knight said in a statement: "This is extremely concerning and it's clear that Yorkshire County Cricket Club has questions to answer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"We have monitored developments around the club's handling of the serious allegations made by Azeem Rafiq.<\/p>\r\n\r\n