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TUDA's response to the Green Paper on the Discrimination Law Review A Framework for Fairness: Proposals for a Single Equality Bill for Great Britain
The Green Paper for producing a Single Equality Act (SEA) was published on 12 June (available on the DCLG website). The deadline for responding is 4 September 2007.
The Single Equality Act will bring together all existing equality laws. The process was launched more than 2 years ago - but this is the first public consultation. A measly three months over the summer! Could it be that they aren't really interested in our views? Never mind - let's let them know what we think about is - and more importantly what sort of a law we need to finally tackle the discrimination and social exclusion of disabled people - along with women, lesbians and gays, people from religious and ethnic minorities etc.
The Green Paper is a long and depressing read - 180 pages of smugness and reasons why business says nothing needs to change! Read the Disability Rights Commission's comments on it - on their website. In sum Bert Massie, Chair of DRC sends out a clear warning:
'What the Green Paper proposes ignores most of the recommendations that have been made over the last year to improve the rights of disabled people. It proposes to virtually destroy the Disability Equality Duty. My approach to this Green Paper is that it does to disability rights what a bulldozer does to a building. Although there are a few new rights proposed on some other strands, on disability this is an appalling Green Paper. If it goes through as it is it will do enormous damage to disabled people and will unravel lot of successes of the last 10 years. I hope the government will think twice.'
The Government have a manifesto commitment to produce a SEA. It was supposed to look at the poor enforcement of the current law- and make changes to improve it. We want all discrimination cases to be heard in equality tribunals (as part of the employment tribunal service). This would make it much easier to bring cases - no fees to take a case and much less risk of having to pay the legal expenses of the other side if you lose. The procedures are much easier too! The Green Paper opposes this.
It says nothing about the need to move away from the present ridiculously complicated medical model definition of disability - to a social model definition. It says nothing about making sure disabled people volunteering; air travel and ferries are protected from discrimination. It says nothing at all about education. We could go on!
Tell them what sort of a law we need
TUDA would like to see:
* Stronger enforcement mechanisms: equality tribunals,
group and representative actions and effective sanctions.
* Extended and strengthened duty to promote equality: which applies to all strands;
retains the general duty's application to all functions and the requirement
on most authorities to produce public equality schemes; explicitly applies to
public procurement and requires action by inspection bodies.
* A clear statement in the Act of its purpose: not merely eliminating discrimination
but enhancing dignity and participation and achieving substantive equality through
positive action where required. Such a clause would improve public understanding
and guide courts, tribunals, and everyone else dealing with the legislation
as to how it should be applied and interpreted.
* Banning all disability discrimination: ships, planes, volunteers and armed
services.
* Stronger protection against education discrimination.
* A simpler, better definition of disability.
* Protection for those discriminated against because they are associated with
or perceived to be a disabled person (this would benefit carers, people working
with HIV positive people and many others) and a fairer approach to disability
discrimination per se (protecting anyone discriminated against on grounds of
impairment).
* Protection against genetic discrimination.
* Clear protection against multiple-discrimination.
The DRC has very similar proposals,
this was worked on by our TUDA Co-Chair Caroline Gooding who also thankfully
also works for the DRC.
These are available on the DRC website.
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