Issues faced by protected and disadvantaged groups should be proactively addressed as the country navigates its post-Covid recovery to ensure that nobody is left behind, according to a report from the Equalities and Human Rights Committee.
MSPs on the Committee are calling on their successor Committee in the next Parliament to prioritise these issues to ensure that existing inequalities are not further exacerbated by the Covid pandemic.
Convener of the Equalities and Human Rights Committee, Ruth Maguire MSP, said: “As the country navigates its way out of the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s vital that those who are already disadvantaged, should not face any further inequality.
“As this parliamentary term comes to a close, we need to ensure that these issues are given the utmost priority as we move forward to creating a more equal country after Covid.
“We need a strengthened approach that puts equalities and human rights at the core of what we do and urge our successor committee to play a key role in this by actively progressing the key issues highlighted in this report”.
In the report, published today, the Committee also called on all Scottish Parliament committees to prioritise equalities and human rights from the outset and to actively pursue and encourage participation from those least likely to engage to ensure their voices are heard.
MSPs also want to ensure the Scottish Parliament continues to develop as an effective human rights guarantor, demonstrating strong human rights leadership. The Committee has set out a number of actions to achieve in the new Session, building on the actions taken this Session.
A new Bill which would allow children to take public bodies to court for breaches of their rights by incorporating the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scots law should be extended to include private sector and voluntary organisations who deliver public services, according to MSPs.
The Scottish Parliament’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee said it supports the general principles of the proposed legislation, but called for the definition of public authorities to be widened to ensure organisations such as private schools and private housing, residential care and childcare providers are not excluded from the legal obligations in the UNCRC.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill legally obliges public authorities – including Scottish Ministers – to respect children and young people’s rights, placing them under a duty not to act incompatibly with the UN Convention.
In its stage 1 report, the Committee recommended that the Scottish Government consults the main stakeholders to investigate how the definition of a so-called “hybrid public authority” could be tightened to avoid similar issues arising as those experienced with the Human Rights Act 1998, where courts have defined the term narrowly and exempted private or voluntary bodies which carry out public functions.
Under the Bill, children and representatives acting on their behalf will be able to challenge public authorities in court for infringing their rights, and the new legislation will allow the courts to strike down legislation that is incompatible with any UNCRC requirements.
However, submissions to the Committee raised concerns about the accessibility of the existing courts and tribunals service to children, and the report called on Scotland’s top judge to reflect on this evidence and to provide an update on progress being made towards developing a “child-friendly” court system in preparation for the new legislation.
MSPs also urged the Scottish Government to amend the Bill so that courts and tribunals “must”, rather than “may”, take into account the whole of the text of the UNCRC and the first two optional protocols when determining a case, and to require courts and tribunals to ask for the child’s views on what would constitute an “effective remedy” in their case.
The Committee’s report further recommended that the Scottish Government amends the commencement provision at stage 2 to ensure the Bill comes into effect six months after Royal Assent.
The Bill also imposes a requirement on Scottish Ministers to make a Children’s Rights Scheme to set out how they will comply with the duties in the UN Convention, but MSPs want the scheme strengthened to include measures to support children with protected characteristics and vulnerable groups, access to advocacy, legal aid, human rights education and a child-friendly complaints mechanism.
Committee Convener, Ruth Maguire MSP, said: “This is a landmark piece of legislation which has the potential to put children’s rights at the heart of public authority decision-making.
However, we believe – as the evidence to the Committee has shown – that there are areas where the Bill can be improved.
“The Committee’s report calls on the Scottish Government to explore how the definition of a public authority can be amended at stage 2 to include those private sector organisations which provide public services, in accordance with the spirit and intention of the Bill.
“We also make recommendations aimed at improving access to justice for children and young people and ensuring judicial remedies for infringements of children’s rights are effective in practice.
“It is vital that children have their rights protected, respected and fulfilled as a matter of urgency, which is why we have urged the Scottish Government to amend the commencement provision to ensure this legislation come into effect six months after the Bill receives Royal Assent.”
A “child-friendly” version of the report, which has been published alongside the stage 1 report, can be accessed via the Committee’s Bill webpage.
MSPs call for action to tackle ‘institutional racism’ in public sector employment
MSPs have called for public bodies to be compelled to publish employee ethnicity pay data to address “institutional racism” and tackle the “unacceptable” levels of unemployment and in-work poverty among minority ethnic communities in Scotland.
Holyrood’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee, which has been investigating what actions are being taken to make sure minority ethnic communities have parity of employment and career progression, urged public authorities to produce an action plan to increase the number of people they employ from minority ethnic communities and reduce the ethnicity pay gap in their organisations.
The focus of the Committee’s inquiry was employers covered by the Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act 2010, which includes large employers like local authorities, health boards as well as other public bodies.
Removal of the barriers faced by black and minority ethnic groups in accessing employment opportunities is key to addressing inequalities in housing, health, education, and participation in public life.
The Committee heard evidence that, despite various initiatives, recruitment, retention and progression of minority ethnic groups in the workplace had regressed over the last two decades and that there was a resistance on the part of employers to acknowledge the existence of institutional racism and its effects.
MSPs made a series of recommendations to address the issues highlighted by the inquiry. In a report published today, the Committee called for more use of “positive actions” to address under-representation of minority ethnic communities in the public sector workforce, and new regulations to require public bodies to publish their ethnicity pay gap, with an action plan to deliver identified outcomes with associated timescales.
Committee Convener, Ruth Maguire MSP, said:“The inquiry heard evidence that unemployment and in-work poverty remains disproportionately higher for people from minority ethnic communities than it is in the majority of the population. We are seriously concerned by the lack of progress in tackling this issue.
“It is extremely disappointing and frustrating that we regularly have to revisit this issue, and it’s little wonder that during our inquiry we heard many witnesses and representatives of black and minority ethnic communities refer to ‘consultation fatigue’.
“From the evidence we heard, there is a sense that many employers prefer to look outwards rather than inwards; as though the issue lies with the minority ethnic communities, when the reality is that the issue lies with the public authorities themselves.
“It is evident that a key factor within this is the failure of the leaders of public authorities to acknowledge the existence of institutional racism and, in so doing, failing to act to deliver a culture shift within their organisations.
“The Committee is unanimously of the view that, despite all the mechanisms at the disposal of public authorities, including their equality duties and responsibilities, the ethnicity employment gap remains unacceptable and much more needs to be done to reduce the ethnicity pay gap, so we see more minority ethnic people in senior positions.”
Ms Maguire added: “Leaders of public authorities need to be accountable for their organisations’ record on employment of ethnic minority people. They must demonstrate leadership in this area. Now is the time for them to take concerted, definitive action.
“To address the lack of progress to date and decades of damage, our report recommends that public sector employers prioritise employment from minority ethnic communities within their strategic plans. We also recommend the Scottish Government regulates to ensure public authorities publish their ethnicity pay gap figures and set out actions to deliver improvements within an agreed timeframe.
“We sincerely hope that our successor committee will not have to revisit this subject, unless it is to reflect on the result of positive action, accountability, and eradication of institutional racism in Scotland.”
A summary of written evidence in response to the Committee’s call for views has been published on its webpage. The committee also held oral evidence sessions throughout September 2020.
A Holyrood Committee has called on the Scottish Government to set out how it intends to address the disproportionately negative impact of the coronavirus pandemic on protected groups, such as women and young people as well as disabled people and black and minority ethnic communities, in its post-Covid economic recovery plan.
As part of the Scottish Parliament’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee pre-budget scrutiny, MSPs heard evidence from a range of organisations on the financial implications of Covid-19 on local authorities and third sector equalities organisations and how health and social inequalities exacerbated by Covid-19 can be addressed in Scotland’s economic recovery.
In a letter to the Minister for Older People and Equalities, Christina McKelvie MSP, the Committee called for human rights-based approach to budgeting, with more effective targeting of resources.
Committee Convener, Ruth Maguire MSP said: “The Committee is acutely aware that the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing health and social inequalities, increasing the demand on third sector support services and, as the crisis continues, placing increased pressure on public services.
“We are therefore asking the Scottish Government to commit to providing further financial support for the third sector in the longer-term to take pressure away from public services, over and above the emergency funding provided.
“An equality and human rights-based approach to public spending, grounded in high quality evidence and placed at the heart of decision-making, should be the cornerstone of this year’s budget. This would give the Committee confidence that already disadvantaged people would not be forgotten, that there would not be unintended consequences, and equalities impacts could be properly addressed.
“We are calling on the Scottish Government to clearly set out the specific actions it intends to take in its Economic Implementation Recovery Plan to address the gendered impact of the pandemic, as well as for other protected groups such as disabled, BME and young people.
“The Committee is also seeking assurance that childcare will be treated as an economic issue and that the role of unpaid carers more generally will be translated into actions in the Recovery Plan.”
MSPs acknowledged that the Scottish Government had introduced new measures to monitor the impact of spending decisions on sex, race, disability and socio‑economic disadvantage, but heard evidence that Scotland was falling behind compared with international comparators.
The letter states: “The Committee very much hopes the new measures put in place by the Scottish Government will have the desired impact, however, we recognise we are coming to the end of the Parliamentary session and so it will be for another committee to continue to scrutinise whether these measures have worked.
“For this reason, the Committee intends in its legacy report to emphasise in the strongest terms to the future committee that if there has not been significant change on mainstreaming, the new committee should consider whether legislating is a viable option to promote change more quickly.”
Care experienced children and young people are among those who will have the opportunity to give their opinions on new legislation which would incorporate an international human rights treaty into Scots law – in a Zoom chat with MSPs.
Virtual calls hosted by children’s rights organisations will allow children and young people from a diverse range of groups across Scotland to meet privately with members of the Scottish Parliament’s Equalities and Human Rights Committee, which is seeking views on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill.
Their comments will form part of the evidence to the committee in its scrutiny of the legislation, which would allow children and young people to take public bodies to court for breaches of their rights.
The Bill legally obliges public authorities – including Scottish Ministers – to respect children’s rights, placing them under a duty not to act incompatibly with the UN Convention, while Ministers will also be required to make a Children’s Rights Scheme to set out how they will comply with the duty.
Children and representatives acting on their behalf will be able to challenge public authorities in court for infringing their rights, and the new legislation will allow the courts to strike down legislation that is incompatible with any UNCRC requirements.
The Bill also provides new powers to the Children and Young People’s Commissioner in Scotland (CYPCS) to litigate in the public interest, which would enable the Commissioner to take cases to court on behalf of children and provide advice to courts about the Convention.
Committee Convener, Ruth Maguire MSP, said:“This legislation has the potential to transform the way public bodies approach the needs and rights of children in Scotland. It is therefore vitally important that we hear from those children who, by reason of ethnicity, gender, religion or disability, are most likely to face discrimination and who may not normally have an opportunity to express their views.
“Online meetings facilitated by organisations that work with care experienced children, young people within the criminal justice system, children with disabilities or other additional support needs, as well as young LGBT people and BAME groups, will allow members of the committee to learn more about the experiences of children and young people and the issues they have to deal with in their daily lives.
“We want to know what barriers they face and what they think should be done to make sure their rights are respected.”
A facilitator’s pack developed with children’s organisations provides groups with activities to help them respond to the consultation. Education resources are available for primary and secondary schools to explain the Bill and Committee process and invite pupils to take part in the consultation. British Sign Language users will also be able to contribute to the Committee’s evidence-gathering by sending in videos with their views.
The closing date for responses to the call for views is midnight on 20 November 2020, which is Universal Children’s Day, marking the day on which the Declaration of the Rights of the Child was adopted in 1959.
The private virtual calls will be hosted by: Who Cares? Scotland; Aberlour; Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice; Scottish Commission for Learning Disability; LGBT Youth Scotland; and Intercultural Youth Scotland.
Together (Scottish Alliance for Children’s Rights) is also hosting virtual calls with the following organisations: The Children’s Parliament; Licketyspit; Children in Scotland; Scottish Youth Parliament; Youth Link Scotland; Barnardo’s Scotland; and Carers Trust Scotland.
