Equal Opportunities Committee, 06 Mar 2007

Meeting date: Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Official Report 96KB pdf

---

European Year of Equal Opportunities for All 2007

Agenda item 2 is the report of my visit to Berlin for the launch of the European year of equal opportunities for all. Do members have any comments?

I agree with the recommendation that we should monitor events and activities. That would be valuable.

It certainly would.

Your report is very good, convener, as is the publication from the conference in Berlin, which contains some very interesting stuff.

I am concerned to note that there will be no launch in Scotland—you highlight that point in your report. Have projects already started in other countries in the United Kingdom or elsewhere?

They have certainly started in other countries. Later this month, I will attend a meeting to consider a Scottish launch for the European year of equal opportunities for all. I hope that our successor committee will be able to monitor what happens during the year.

The UK—and clearly Scotland—has been very slow in making progress on the year. If members read the publication from the launch they will see lots of parallels with work that we have done in the Scottish Parliament, so it is a great pity that we have been a bit slow to get moving. We have a good story to tell and a number of issues to highlight. It would be a pity to miss out on this year and not be able to do something.

The convener, the clerks and other committee members have done a lot of work, but we do not know what is happening UK-wide, or Scotland-wide. Will we receive feedback if there is a UK launch? Obviously, the committee will be finishing up shortly and will no longer be meeting.

We will be looking at Scottish events and at what can be done in Scotland in the European year of equal opportunities for all. We can also monitor what is happening in the rest of the UK. As I said, there will be a meeting later this month.

Will the committee meet after that meeting? Will we receive feedback?

Yes, the committee will meet after that meeting and outcomes will be fed back to members. At the meeting, I will make strong representations and recommendations on behalf of the committee. There are things that we have to do in Scotland to make progress during the European year.

I look forward to hearing about the meeting.

I like the idea that the European year is a year of equal opportunities for all and not just for one equalities strand. That ties in with the idea of mainstreaming and the ideas of the commission for equality and human rights.

We have done a lot of work on disability during this session of the Parliament, but it would be nice next session if the Equal Opportunities Committee could pick up on our ideas but concentrate more on mainstreaming.

That would be valuable. Members will recall that our work on disability during this session emerged from the European year of disabled people. It would therefore make sense if this year we considered wider equalities issues. We should consider issues right across the board and look into mainstreaming.

I was struck by the number of different organisations at the conference in Berlin, and by the number of different interests that were represented. I was heartened to learn that lots of things were happening in Europe, and even more heartened to realise that in Scotland we are ahead of the game in some areas. We want to keep up the momentum.

I am looking through your report page by page. At point 7, under the heading "Conference opening", you say that the

"German Federal Minister for Family Affairs … highlighted"

the fact that

"large numbers of immigrants have provided a huge opportunity for Germany".

Was that point elaborated on?

It was pointed out that immigration has had a positive effect on economic growth in Germany. A new workforce has brought new skills. The sentiments that were expressed by the minister were very positive.

Do members agree with the recommendations at the end of my report—paper EO.S2.07.05.01?

Members indicated agreement.

I will report back to the committee after the meeting later this month.