Question reference: S5W-09724
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 19 June 2017
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Current status: Answered by Angela Constance on 6 July 2017
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what (a) guidance and (b) enforcement measures there are to ensure that its £1.75 billion housing investment meets the (i) equalities goals in the Race Equality Framework, in particular Goal 25 that Scotland's public sector workforce is representative of its communities, and (ii) Fairer Scotland Action Plan commitment to “look to...new employability programmes to ensure greater opportunity for all in the labour market, and...tackle discrimination".
Answer
Guidance on Local Housing Strategies (LHS) was published in 2014 and refers to the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 which requires an LHS to state how a local authority will comply with its duty under Section 106 of the Act.
Section 106 states that local authorities must exercise the functions conferred on them by the Act in a manner which encourages equal opportunities and in particular the observance of the equal opportunity requirements which are set out in the Equality Act 2010 and includes age, disability, sex (including Pregnancy and Maternity), gender reassignment, sexual orientation, race, religion and belief. An Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) of the LHS Is required if people are affected by a policy or strategy, either directly or indirectly.