Chamber and committees

Local authorities, like other public bodies, are covered by the public sector equality duty in the Equality Act 2010 which is reserved to the UK Government. In relation to the Scottish specific duties, Scottish ministers are currently considering the specific equality duties to be placed on public authorities in Scotland. The Scottish Government has consulted on proposed regulations on three separate occasions and COSLA has been engaged throughout and individual local authorities have responded as part of the consultation. How local authorities will apply these legal requirements to their spending decisions is a matter for them.

The Scottish Government drew on the considerations of the Equality Budget Advisory Group, of which COSLA is a member, as part of the spending review process. These discussions included, amongst other issues, consideration of the general implications for public services of reductions in public spending imposed on Scotland by the UK Government and the impact that these may have on vulnerable groups.

In addition, a specific outcome of the Spending Review, captured in the Equality Statement which was published alongside the budget, has been the agreed and decisive shift towards preventative spend measures and the creation of new change funds which provide opportunities to secure positive outcomes for some of the most vulnerable people in society; including older adults, disabled people and people from ethnic minority groups.

The Equality Budget Statement sets out further detail of the local government portfolio’s consideration of the potential impact on equality of budget decisions, and this portfolio’s contribution towards creating a more equal Scotland. The Equality Budget Statement Scottish Spending Review 2011 and Draft Budget 2012-13 can be found at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/26110945/0.

The Scottish Government takes its responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and the public sector equality duty very seriously and we continue to work to ensure that the spending decisions we take pay due regard to their impact on equality.

Further detail about how the Scottish Government has taken forward its work in this area can be found within the Equality Budget Statement which was published alongside the Scottish Spending Review 2011 and Draft Budget 2012-13. The statement provides an equality analysis by portfolio and information about the action taken to embed equality within the spending review, including the action taken to raise awareness across government of our responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/26110945/0.

Scottish Government takes its responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and the public sector equality duty very seriously and we continue to work to ensure that the financial decisions we take pay due regard to their impact on equality.

Further detail about how Scottish Government has taken forward its work in this area can be found within the Equality Budget Statement which was published alongside the Scottish Spending Review 2011 and Draft Budget 2012-13. The statement provides an equality analysis by portfolio and information about the action taken to embed equality within the spending review, including the action taken to raise awareness across government of our responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010.

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/26110945/0.

The Scottish Government takes its responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and the public sector equality duty very seriously and we continue to work to ensure that the spending decisions we take pay due regard to their impact on equality.

Further detail about how the Scottish Government has taken forward its work in this area can be found within the Equality Budget Statement which was published alongside the Scottish Spending Review 2011 and Draft Budget 2012-13. This is available at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/26110945/0. The statement provides an equality analysis by Portfolio and information about the action taken to embed equality within the spending review, including the action taken to raise awareness across government of our responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010.

We continue to seek improvements in our approach to the budget and work with the Equality Budget Advisory Group (EBAG) in this regard. For the first time this year, building on feedback, we intend to publish a summary update of our equality analysis that will take account of the impact of changes that occur to the Draft Budget 2012-13 as a result of the budget scrutiny process.

Yes.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04212 on 8 December 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-04212 on 8 December 2011. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

Scottish Government takes its responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and the public sector equality duty very seriously and we continue to work to ensure that the financial decisions we take pay due regard to their impact on equality. An exercise was undertaken to gather available information about equalities groups likely to be affected by the further education budget proposals. This is summarised in the Equality Budget Statement, which was published alongside the Scottish Spending Review 2011 and Draft Budget 2012-13, and is available at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/09/26110945/0.

The Scottish Government has a collaborative framework contract for the supply of marketing services. The framework was awarded in January 2009 and runs until 31 March 2012. Work is currently underway to relet this requirement. One of the categories within this contract is the provision of event management services with the following 11 contractors.

BiP Solutions

Holyrood Communications

Meeting Makers

Motomo Partnership

Rocket

SHSCEvents

Sound and Vision AV Ltd

Speakeasy

Stark Events

Strategem

Think Different Events.

We are not aware of any legal impediments to providing financial assistance, for example through the Scottish Investment Fund or the Enterprise Growth Fund, to encourage organisational growth and sustainability. As part of the third sector, credit unions are also eligible to apply for business development support through the Just Enterprise programme.