Public Sector Equality Duty

Insight

Specific Equality Duties: Northern Ireland

The Equality Act 2010 does not apply to Northern Ireland. Anti-discrimination legislation is devolved, and Northern Ireland has separate regulations for different protected groups, as opposed to the harmonised approach in the Equality Act 2010.

The public sector equality duty as detailed in Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 is quite similar to the duty which covers the UK mainland, namely the promotion of equality of opportunity and good relations. The third UK mainland element, (the elimination of discrimination), is subsumed within the promotion of equality of opportunity. The proactive approach is consistent across the UK.

Schedule 9 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 outlines out a range of requirements to give effect to the duties under Section 75. Public authorities are obliged to develop an equality scheme which details how they propose to fulfill the duties imposed by Section 75 in relation to their relevant functions. Equality Schemes must be submitted to and approved by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (ECNI).

An Equality Scheme must include arrangements for:

Assessing Compliance and Consulting

An Equality Scheme must include how a public authority intends to assess its compliance with the Section 75 statutory duties and details of arrangements for consultation. The legislation requires consultation on the Scheme itself, on the impact of policies with reference to Section 75 and on other relevant matters.

Equality Impact Assessments

Public authorities must assess and consult on the likely impact of their policies on the promotion of equality of opportunity. An equality scheme must include information about how the public authority is going to assess the likely impact of policies on the promotion of equality of opportunity and how they will consult on the potential impact of policies. The ECNI Guidance states that public authorities should commit to assessing policies at the policy development stage as opposed to post-implementation. This should assist with mitigating the risk of negative or differential impact on protected groups.

Monitoring Adverse Impact

Equality Schemes should include how public authorities will monitor negative impact in terms of the promotion of equality. ECNI recommends that monitoring is used as a method or the identification of opportunities to better promote equality of opportunity and good relations.

Training Staff

Arrangements for increasing staff awareness of the Section 75 duties should be included in Equality Schemes.

Arrangements for Ensuring and Assessing Public Access to Information

The public authority must detail how it ensures that it makes services, information and communication accessible to the public.