Equal Opportunities Committee, 18 Dec 2007

Meeting date: Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Official Report 202KB pdf

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Work Programme

We move to item 2. I invite members to consider paper EO.S3.07.09.02, which lists a number of suggestions for work to be added to the committee's work programme.

The first suggestion is that, after we hear from the Minister for Public Health on the Government's ageing strategy, we hold a round-table discussion or a panel discussion on age, to take the issues that arise a little further. Do members agree with that approach?

Convener, in relation to that suggestion and the next two, will you clarify whether we would hold round-table discussions or panel discussions?

I might as well mention the other two suggestions. The second one is a round-table discussion or panel on carers, and the third is a round-table discussion or panel on women offenders. If the committee agrees to the suggestions, the clerks will prepare proposals on the discussions. Do members agree that we should consider those proposals in private at a future meeting? That will allow us to decide which witnesses we would like to invite.

Members indicated agreement.

That is helpful. Thank you.

The next suggestion in the paper is that we ask the Scottish Parliament information centre to prepare a research paper on school and workplace bullying. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

The next suggestion is that we write to the Educational Institute of Scotland to find out its position on the recent employment discrimination case of Glasgow City Council v McNab. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

The next suggestion is that we ask the Justice Committee, as part of its inquiry into the effective use of police resources, to include further questions on policing from an equal opportunities perspective. We have those questions listed. Are we agreed on that course of action?

Members indicated agreement.

Are members agreed that we ask the Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Culture, Linda Fabiani, whether the Scottish Government has commissioned, or intends to commission, research on whether pupils who use the Scots language in primary schools face discrimination?

Members indicated agreement.

Are we agreed that we will invite representatives from the European Commission and the Scottish Government to discuss the legacy of the 2007 European year of equal opportunities for all?

Members indicated agreement.

The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland is well established in its work and has groundbreaking strategies in place. Do members wish to invite the commission to give us a briefing on its work?

We ought to do that. It would be apposite because a previous Equal Opportunities Committee visited Northern Ireland in the first session of Parliament.

So we all agree to invite the commission.

Members indicated agreement.

An outstanding issue in our work programme is to explore the possibility of working with the Equality of Opportunity Committee of the National Assembly for Wales and with the Northern Ireland Assembly on devolved equal opportunities issues of interest. Do members agree to the committee ascertaining how to progress that work?

Members indicated agreement.

That is helpful.

Members will be aware of the recently published Scottish social attitudes survey, "Attitudes to Discrimination in Scotland: 2006". Do members want a briefing on it, given that its findings caused considerable concern?

Members indicated agreement.

Finally, we must consider whether to do a taking-stock exercise on religion and belief. Predecessor equal opportunities committees carried out similar exercises for the five other equality strands. Do members agree to carry out a taking-stock exercise on religion and belief, just to complete the picture?

Members indicated agreement.

We have agreed our work programme, but I put in the caveat that, if the proposed hate crime bill were to come to this committee, we might have to reconsider the work programme. We have left a little bit of slack in it to take account of any subordinate legislation or petitions that come to the committee. With that caveat, are members happy with the work programme as agreed?

I am not sure about the process. In what order will we see the people whom we will invite? What issues have priority?

Instead of undertaking an inquiry this year, we have decided to have round-table or panel discussions to inform a decision on which issue to single out or a decision on a running order for the issues that we want to tackle. However, given that the previous Equal Opportunities Committee spent two and a half years on the issue of disability, the work programme is designed to take a broad-brush approach to encompass as many different aspects of the Equal Opportunities Committee's remit as possible.

We do not necessarily have to deal with the issues in the order in which they appear in the briefing paper. However, the round-table and panel discussions will have a high priority, and we will key in other issues at various times, not least the evidence-taking session for the review of discrimination law, which will be on, I think, 1 February, at which Harriet Harman will speak to the committee in private. Sessions like that will be tabled into the calendar.

I have a couple of points. First, we should bear it in mind that the briefing on the attitudes survey might throw up further work for the committee. Secondly, our committee reporters may wish to take little bits of evidence on particular issues in the course of the work programme—we have already had a meeting on gender. I want to ensure that there would be time to deal with those issues.

Yes, absolutely. I have had an indication that reporters will want to submit reports to the committee. Such reports will be included in the work programme.

The clerks will work up a paper on the taking-stock exercise on religion and belief that the committee will consider in private at a future meeting, so that we can decide how to tackle the issue. Does the committee agree to that approach?

Members indicated agreement.

I remind broadcasting staff and members of the public that the committee is moving into private session to discuss item 3. I wish everyone a very merry Christmas.

Meeting continued in private until 13:01.