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CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION TO DISABILITY EQUALITY SCHEME ANNUAL REPORT 2007
Background
1.1 Equality legislation has developed significantly over the last forty years and in particular over the last five years with a move to a more proactive approach to addressing prejudice and discrimination through the public sector equality duties.
1.2 There are three public sector equality duties for race, disability and gender. They place a positive duty on public authorities to eliminate unlawful discrimination and harassment and promote equality of opportunity. These duties aim to ensure that public policies, practices and services take into account the different needs of ethnic groups, disabled people and women and men in their development and delivery and make real improvements to people's lives.
Disability equality duty
1.3 The Duty to promote equality for disabled people was introduced through the Disability Discrimination Act ( DDA) 2005 and requires all public bodies to have 'due regard' to:
- the need to promote equality of opportunity between disabled people and other people;
- the need to eliminate discrimination that is unlawful under the DDA;
- the need to eliminate disability related harassment;
- the need to promote positive attitudes towards disabled people;
- the need to encourage participation by disabled people in public life; and
- the need to take steps to meet disabled peoples needs, even if this requires more favourable treatment.
1.4 In addition, Scottish Ministers placed specific duties on listed public authorities through the Disability Discrimination (Public Authorities) (Statutory Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2005. These specific duties required listed bodies, including the Scottish Government, to publish a disability equality scheme by 4 December 2006 and to report annually. This document is our annual report.
Scottish Government disability equality scheme
1.5 We published our first disability equality scheme on 4 December 2006. It sets out the Scottish Government's commitment to disability equality and the steps that it has taken, and will take, across Government to meet its disability equality duties over 2006 to 2009.
1.6 The development of the scheme was led by the Equality Unit and supported by our Equality Scheme Implementation Group ( ESIG). It was also informed by our involvement of disabled people. An update on our involvement of disabled people is discussed further in Chapter 2.
1.7 Our first disability equality scheme is available on the Scottish Government's website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/03/19133143/0.
Revision of disability equality scheme
1.8 As a result of the elections in May, we have a new Government with a new approach. Ministers have set out the following overarching purpose and five strategic objectives for Government.
Purpose
1.9 To focus Government and public services on creating a more successful country, with opportunities for all of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable economic growth.
Strategic Objectives
- Wealthier and Fairer - Enable businesses and people to increase their wealth and more people to share fairly in that wealth.
- Healthier - Help people to sustain and improve their health, especially in disadvantaged communities, ensuring better, local and faster access to health care.
- Safer and Stronger - Help local communities to flourish, becoming stronger, safer place to live, offering improved opportunities and a better quality of life.
- Smarter - Expand opportunities for Scots to succeed from nurture through to life long learning ensuring higher and more widely shared achievements.
- Greener - Improve Scotland's natural and built environment and the sustainable use and enjoyment of it.
1.10 Following the findings of the Taking Stock: Fit for the Future Review and to support Ministers to deliver their objectives, the structure of the Government as an organisation has changed. We are now no longer made up of Departments but instead structured under Directorates and Government Agencies.
1.11 Furthermore on 14 November 2007, the Scottish Government published its budget proposals and its newly developed national performance framework. It also indicated a significant change in delivery with the forging of a radical agreement with local government.
1.12 These developments impact on the structure and content of our Scheme and although we had indicated in our original Scheme that we would revise the Scheme in the light of the elections by the end of 2007, the nature and timing of these changes means that that we will now publish a revised Scheme by end of March 2008. We will also take account of the areas for improvement identified by the Disability Rights Commission in our revision.
Structure of our annual report
1.13 As part of our disability equality duties we are required to publish an annual report containing a summary of:
- the steps we have taken to fulfil our disability equality duty;
- the results of the information gathering we have undertaken and what we have done with the information gathered.
1.14 Our annual report therefore contains 5 chapters, structured as follows:
- chapter 1 provides the background, context and approach to our disability equality scheme annual report.
- chapter 2 provides an update on the strategic priorities identified in our involvement work and on our steps to develop the involvement of disabled people throughout the life of the scheme.
- chapter 3 considers our progress on gathering information and the use of that information.
- chapter 4 looks at our progress towards our corporate actions e.g. as an employer, information technology and web access, accommodation - the Scottish Government estate and procurement.
- chapter 5 contains updates on our action plans. To reflect the reorganisation of the Government we have revised our action plans into a total of 12 action plans - 5 action plans under the Scottish government's five strategic objectives, a cross directorate action plan looking at the corporate processes of the Government and 6 agency action plans.
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