Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Take a stand - Defend equality

Over the course of time we get used to it.

(Guest Post) “It” being a methodical onslaught on privileges (such as free comprehensive health care), freedoms (such as the freedom to live with the ones you love where ever they may come from in the world even if you earn less than £18,600 per year) and our rights.

Sometime last year the Government issued their now (in?) famous “Red Tape Challenge”. As part of this, one of the proposals was to repeal the Equality act 2010.

This suggestion prompted a deluge of responses from across the Country to leave the act alone. The act was brought in at the end of the last Labour Government after a tortuous amount of consultation and involvement stretching over years.

The new coalition government in their infinite wisdom started swiftly to make the changes by simply failing to implement sections of the Act (protection over Dual discrimination) http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/equalities/equality-act/faq/ and watering it down where they could (the move away for the requirement to equality impact assess policy changes to simply paying “due regard” to equality).

However on the 15th May this year, it seems clear that it was time to focus on our rights. Issuing a double whammy of two sets of consultations on repealing two sections of the equality act, removing equality act questionnaires and reconsidering and reviewing the Public Sector Equality Duty the proposals have explicit intention to scream out:

· Tribunals have no place in preventing future discrimination

· People making allegations of discrimination have no place demanding that they should be protected from harassment

· People making allegations of discrimination have no business asking for answers from their respondents before their day in court

· The Public Sector Equality Duty has no place in making sure that unfair and discriminatory decisions don’t take place.

The organisation I work for has set up a website for people in Northamptonshire to respond to the proposals here [http://defendequality.co.uk] but if you live outside Northamptonshire you can learn more about the proposals and find a suggested set of words to complain to the Government Equalities Office on both enforcement@geo.gsi.gov.uk and thirdpartyharassment@geo.gsi.gov.uk

Don’t forget to write to your local MP. You have until 7th August 2012 to take action. If you don’t ... you very well might regret it.

(Guest post by Anjona Roy: photo Kelly)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

John,

Newham Council is a total joke. We have lots of unemployed people in Newham. Then you import people into the Borough and house them your built slumls like this.

I have to thank Mike Law for bringing this to our attention.

Keeping Newham residents poor = more Labour votes!

If you spent less time talking about pensions and other crap you would have more time to help Newham residents.

Read the article yourself.

http://newhamnettles.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/olympic-cleaning-staff-living-in-newham.html

George Osborne said...

Sounds like Daily Mail believer Mike Law is up to his old tricks of making anonymous comments to build his ego.

Surely everyone knows the Daily Mail is a comic that makes things up and tell lies?

If this is a real issue it has nothing to do with Newham Council and is down to Boris and Cole.

Yet another example of how pathetic and desperate some people are who will believe anything to run Newham and the Olympics down

John Gray said...

Hi

Please don't spoil a great post on equality with any mention of the Daily Hate. Hope you never get old anon.

I'm post something in a little while that the Newham trolls can try and feast upon.

George it is Coe!

Anonymous said...

I apologise, to Anjona Roy I am stealing the thread.... (and nope it is not Mike Law, although I like his blog!).

This is an important issue. Why did n't the jobs go to Newham. We have high unemployment.

Anon 17 July 2012 13:25

George Osbourne said...

this is mike pretending again.