RSS feed: Single Equality Bill
This section contains information about the Commission’s work to support the creation of a new equality act. We want to see a modern, single legal framework, providing clearer, more streamlined law that is more effective at tackling disadvantage and discrimination.
On 26 June 2008 Harriet Harman, Leader of the House of Commons, announced the new Single Equality Bill. The Commission welcomed it for providing the basis for a new fairness act aimed at allowing everyone, whatever their background, to fulfil their ambitions.
Read the Government's proposals in Framework for a Fairer Future (external link - PDF file)
Other organisations expressed also their views on the announcement, with the Confederation of British Institute (CBI) approving the Government's new means to promote equality, whilst Help the Aged & Age Concern issued a joint with response expressing their worry about the pace of reform. The proposals were mostly welcomed by the unions with the TUC calling it a ‘Piece of landmark legislation’.
Formal response
On 21 July 2008 Trevor Phillips presented the Commission's formal response to these proposals at an event for key stakeholders.
The response does not attempt to deal with every detail of every clause of the new Equality Bill, but it does set out what the Commission would like to see, including a complete over-haul of Britain’s equality laws and a new contract with the public on fairness. This could be by placing power in the hands of citizens and not remote bureaucracies, and that people by local petition or referendum could test public services such as schools and hospitals on how fairly they treat the people who use them.
You can download a copy of the Commission's full response here: 
Fairness: A new contract with the public (PDF 468kb)
Fairness: A new contract with the public (Accessible Word version 208kB)
Background to a single Act
The current equality laws have been vitally important, and over the last ten years the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, Race Relations Act 1976, and Disability Discrimination Act 1995 have been strengthened and expanded. New laws have also been introduced to cover discrimination on grounds of religion or belief, sexual orientation and age.
But this means that the legislation has become complex and difficult to use. Replacing it with a single piece of legislation should provide simpler, more consistent anti-discrimination protection. In addition, today’s social, political and legal conditions and expectations are now very different than they were when the current laws were created. A new equality act should meet these new conditions and expectations, and proclaim that rights to equality and protection against unfair discrimination are an integral part of our constitution.
In February 2005 the government announced the arrival of the Discrimination Law Review (DLR). The aim of the DLR was to consider the opportunities for creating a clearer and more streamlined equality legislation framework. The DLR initially ran alongside the Equalities Review, which published its final report in February 2007.
The Government’s DLR team published a green paper in June 2007, setting out its recommendations for a single equality act for Great Britain. There was then a period of formal consultation with stakeholders, whose responses are now being considered by the government team, as they work towards an equality bill, and eventually, the act itself.
Responses to the DLR Green Paper
Please follow the links below to read the EHRC’s response to the DLR green paper, as well as the responses of the legacy commissions and other equality stakeholders.