Local Government
This could be an enormous page... of enormous interest to Michael (the one who's writing this, and on a bank holiday too---sad, isn't it) and to a few of Intercom's mates in local government (Hi, Angela, Jo, Camilla, Sue, David, Ginny!)... and to virtually no-one else.
Instead, let's try to keep it short and just hit just the high spots.
LGB equality and local government services: the story so far
The challenge for local government has been to ensure equality and non-discrimination in service-delivery when there was no legal compulsion on them at all to do this. Some authorities in the South West have done brilliantly. Devon County Council has worked in very close partnership with us and other community-led equality organisations for years: we know their work well, and we have the greatest respect for what they've achieved. Some other authorities, we know, have also worked hard to mainstream equality through their services, while others are apparently deeply resistant. Names have been concealed ---for the present---so as not to embarrass the guilty! We'll see what happens now that the law has changed (see below).
For more information about how local authorities can develop good practice, in general, contact us.
Equality in local government: breaking news
The landscape changed dramatically on 30 April 2007, when the new Goods and Services Regulations came into force (see our Breaking News page, and our Legal Equality page).
All local government, from parish councils up to county and unitary authorities, and further up to the regional Government Offices and the Regional Assembly, are now covered, without any exemptions, by the new Regulations.
Every service they deliver now has to be delivered without discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. This includes adult and children's services, housing, reception areas and walk-in enquiry centres, their work on crime and disorder reduction partnerships, and the massively important new work on Local Area Agreement funding streams.
Some authorities are already really well positioned to do well on this. Others have not yet started. We are concerned about some of these in particular, where we fear there might be serious challenges at any time under the new legislation.
Local councillors
Local councillors at all levels work under a Code of Conduct laid down by the government. Article 2a of each of these Codes says that local councillors and other elected members must "promote equality by not discriminating unlawfully against any person". This means that all local elected members need to know about the new Regulations, and to ensure that the key policy and funding decisions for which they have final responsibility are taken in a way which does not discriminate, actively or indirectly, against the issues and needs of LGB people, communities, organisations, etc.
You can click here to see the current versions of this Code for parish councillors, other local councillors, and police authorities. A new Code covering all of these comes into force at the latest on 1 October 2007, and it contains a similar provision, that elected members must not "do anything which may cause your authority to breach any of the equality enactments (as defined in section 33 of the Equality Act 2006" (Section 3(2)a). The new Regulations are included in this reference. Here is a link to the new Code.
Does this matter?
We think that there will be fewer complaints than before from people who think they have encountered homophobic prejudice in local government services. Where there is a complaint, people can now, as of 30 April 2007, appeal to the Court for a remedy, including compensation. We hope very much that we shall not need to see any such cases anywhere in the peninsula. If you are having any problems with local government services, call our Helpline and Advocacy team: between us we have a lot of experience and knowledge in this area, and we may be able to assist.