Jacqui Smith MP

Social Integration Conference

I'm delighted to have the chance to address you in my capacity as the deputy Minister for Women and Equality - a role that was created by the present UK Government.

Because the UK Government believes that promoting equality needs to be a part of our key political aims. And that it needs to be embedded in our policies and in our institutions.

Because equality is a core value for us. It is fundamental to our political outlook. We know that, in a world of increasing competition, equality, social cohesion and economic success go hand in hand. So since 1997, we have worked to increase opportunity and tackle discrimination through a wide range of policies, programmes and legislation.

We are determined that the message should go out loud and clear - pursuing equality is not a minority pursuit. Indeed, it goes to the heart of who we are and what we do. We believe that everyone has the right to fulfil their potential and that only a fair, prosperous Britain can provide choice and opportunity for all.

In Britain as the rest of Europe, we are facing massive demographic changes and changes in our labour force.

We know, for instance, that over the next seven years there will be two million more jobs in the economy - 80% of which will be filled by women.

We know that the minority ethnic population now accounts for nearly 8% of people in the UK. And that the working age population will increase by a million in the next ten years - minority ethnic communities will account for more than half that increase.

Our approach to equality must reflect those demographic changes so that we encourage a more inclusive programme, with an increased emphasis on the principle of citizenship.

How are we doing this? Firstly, by providing a framework of legislation to drive change. In the UK we have had protection against discrimination on the grounds of race and gender for many years. And in the last decade, we introduced protection against discrimination for people with a disability. Indeed, this legislation is still coming into force on an incremental basis.

Next month, new legislation will come into force to tackle discrimination on the grounds of religion and sexual orientation and in 2006, further legislation outlawing discrimination on the grounds of age (which will affect us all).

These regulations, which as you will know, emanated from the EU and which were actively supported by this Government, will provide an even more solid base of protection for our citizens.

And following on from Article 13, the European Commission has just launched, for the first time, a new directive looking at sex discrimination outside the workplace. This will aim to implement the principle of equal treatment between men and women in the access to and supply of goods and services.

The UK already has legislation outlawing such discrimination, which was recently amended to encourage political parties to nominate more women candidates.

We have also just completed a consultation on civil partnership registration proposing the creation of a new legal status for lesbians and gay couples, providing them with rights and responsibilities in areas like inheritance and pensions.

As a Government, I think we can take credit for moving the equality programme forward. But I also recognise that despite all our efforts, we simply haven't made the progress we want to if we are to achieve real equality. Consider for instance:

At work, women still lose out to the tune of about 360,000 Euros over the course of their working lives, just for being female.

A recent Government report showed that a black man is still over twice as likely to be unemployed compared to a white man.

Disabled people are almost seven times more likely to be out of work and claiming benefit than people without disabilities. They also face discrimination in their daily lives.

And the trade unions report that a staggering percentage (44%) of lesbians and gay men say they have been harassed at work because of their sexual orientation.

This Government has clearly created a solid legislative base from which to operate, but in order to make sure that our approach is joined-up, we have also taken steps to co-ordinate responsibility for different strands of equality across a range of Government departments.

Using this cross cutting approach, we can ensure that all the major Government departments are involved in co-ordinating policy on equality and diversity and ensuring progress to a more equal society.

We recognise, however, that we need to go beyond this policy lead responsibility to ensure that our equality work impacts on all departments - particularly those delivering historic increases in investment in public services.

At various levels of Government, for instance, I am pleased to say that many have adopted a mainstreaming equality approach, underpinned by the introduction this year of public service agreements for gender, race and disability equality. We are now in the process of developing detailed delivery plans to take these agreements forward.

The UK Government has developed an easy-to-use gender mainstreaming tool, which puts people at the heart of policy-making, and leads to better Government by making diversity visible to mainstream society.

It provides a methodology for policy makers to assess whether their policies will deliver equality of opportunity across the board, and helps to challenge policy makers to question the assumption that policies and services affect everyone in the same way.

Equality Impact Assessments can be applied to legislation, policy plans and programmes, budgets, reports and existing policies and services. Ideally, they should be done at an early stage in the decision making process so that policies can be changed - or even scrapped - if necessary.

We are particularly determined to tackle the disadvantage faced by our minority ethnic communities, and have introduced a duty on public authorities to promote equality of opportunity for race. In that way, we can ensure that minority groups get fairer access to public services.

Public authorities also have to monitor their policies for any adverse impact on race equality, as well as publish and consult on this assessment. And they have to monitor the number of staff they have in post - and job applicants - by racial group. This is to ensure fair access to jobs - without it we will never know whether equality is being achieved.

And following a major study by the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit, we are also tackling barriers faced by minority ethnic groups in the labour market through a number of programmes to improve skills and access to jobs.

If we deliver these objectives, everyone benefits. If we fail, the social and economic costs are high in terms of poor health, poverty, crime and the risks of a fragmented society.

But it's more than that. For Government, investing in a fairer and more just society represents an investment in the future of Britain, and forms an integral part of all aspects of our policies.

Legislation and government action to mainstream equality are important, but this is not enough. We also need to drive a culture change. The legislation we have had in place for over thirty years has helped, but more effort is needed to make a difference.

So we need to move away from the idea that discrimination legislation is only about protecting minority groups, important though that is. We need to create an environment where equality and diversity are valued and celebrated. And we need institutions to deliver this change.

In the UK, we have just announced, after the biggest review of equality for over a quarter of a century, that we will set up a single equality and human rights commission to fight discrimination and challenge inequality wherever it occurs.

We believe this is the best way to drive forward an inclusive equality programme, one that takes account of the profound demographic changes taking place in the UK.

The new commission will help us in that drive - to promote a common message of the benefits of equality, diversity and human rights. Building on a culture of rights and responsibilities, it will contribute to a new, inclusive sense of British citizenship and identity.

The new body will bring together the work of the three existing commissions - on gender, race and disability - and take responsibility for new legislation outlawing discrimination on religion, sexual orientation and age. It will also have responsibility for promoting human rights.

This will be a body with a strategic outlook. It will promote and mainstream equality of opportunity, encourage social cohesion and reduce barriers to participation. It will promote good practice to business and public sector organisations, and, importantly, it will provide a single point of contact for individuals, business and other organisations who want local, accessible information.

This single Commission will reflect our key message that equality is not a minority issue. It impacts on all of us.

Finally, let me just say that like you, I want to live in a country where prejudice and discrimination are challenged, where everyone has the opportunity to reach their full potential, where people's talents and skills and differences are recognised, acknowledge and valued, where we can all feel safe and live in communities built on respect for one other.

That's good for individuals and their families, but also central to the type of society and country we want to be.

The right to be treated equally and fairly is fundamental. It is the foundation stone upon which everything else depends and allows individuals to pursue the other aspects of their lives - education, employment, personal and family relationships and community life.

These values are key to our broader goals for a highly productive economy and first class public services, with high standards of living for everyone.

Equality is the core value that drives this Government. And we are determined to do our best to deliver it, in the best way we can.

Thank you.