The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Ian Blair, is the latest target of those in British journalism who claim to represent Middle England. He has been described as politically correct, because he has declared that he is determined to root out white racism in his force.

Blair says he wants to transform his organisation from one that has been almost all white, into one that has a fair and reasonable number of recruits in all ranks from the minority communities. In so doing he has opened up the recruiting process to allow the fast-tracking of black and Asian men and women into the organisation. This seems reasonable and necessary, but his detractors say it amounts to discrimination against whites.

The commissioner also tells us he will not spare the rod in dealing with officers who have been accustomed to using racial epithets to humiliate colleagues of dark skin and members of the public. And he is determined to reform the disciplinary procedures so that getting rid of the dross becomes much easier.

Blair is responding to the reality of racism and racists. If their treatment of some people is racially determined, then their treatment of everyone is so determined. You cannot be a racist on Monday and an egalitarian on Tuesday. You cannot discriminate against travellers on Wednesday and respect women on Thursday. Like a cancer, the disease spreads from lung to liver and on until the entire body is consumed.

Recently, a detective presented a paper on Islam while on a race-relations training course. He referred to Shi'ites (Shias) as "Shitties", Muslim headgear as "tea cosies", and closed by ridiculing the holy month of Ramadan. An Asian officer who was present reported him. Blair, rightly furious, wanted the offender disciplined, but the procedures let him down.

The case ended up before an employment tribunal, where the officer sued for constructive dismissal on the grounds that he was a victim of racism. He would have us believe he was unable to pronounce the word "Shi'ite", because he had never seen or heard it before. What planet does he inhabit? And, pathetically, he argued that his other comments were attempts at humour.

Sir Ian Blair's instincts and methods appear to me to be sound. For the first time since I joined the struggle for fair policing, 40 years ago, we have a commissioner at the Met who has a radical agenda on race. Long may he reign.