Agenda item

Following the adoption of the IHRA’s definition of anti-semitism on 17 December 2019, Council agreed to refer the Equality and Diversity Policy to the Overview & Scrutiny Committee for review, together with the motion supported at Council, so that the policy could be updated accordingly.

The Notice of Motion to Council on 17 December was:

‘That this council accepts the request from the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (letter attached) to adopt the following non legally binding working definition of anti-semitism:’

‘Anti-semitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred towards Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-semitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities’.

Please note – the attached policy statement (employment) is currently in draft form. Unison is in the process of being consulted and there may be amendments arising from this.

A full version of the Policy (dated 2006) is also attached.

The DSM introduced the item and informed Members that it had come to the Committee as a result of a motion to Full Council to accept a revised anti-Semitism  statement. She added that it was apparent that the Equality and Diversity policy document had not been reviewed since 2006, though a draft of the new associated employment statement was attached for review. It was suggested that it would be up to Members to determine how to review the policy.

Questions and Discussion

Cllr S Bütikofer stated that she was keen to look at a wider inclusion, and suggested that work to review the policy could be picked up as part of the work of the upcoming Scrutiny Panels. She added that after looking at the current policy, that there was a reasonable amount of work to be done, and that the anti-Semitism statement currently sat alongside the policy. The HLS informed Members that the policy formed part of the Council’s corporate governance framework, and as a result it must be addressed as a matter of priority, as it exposed the Council to risk. She added that officer resourcing would be required to draft a new policy.

Cllr E Seward stated that it was at the December meeting of Full Council during the anti-Semitism statement discussion that he had noticed when the policy had last been reviewed. He added that the Equality and Human Rights Commission had developed the Equality Act in 2010, and since then the understanding of equality had progressed significantly to become much more inclusive. He added that he had spent 30 years with the Committee for Racial Equality, so it was an issue dear to his heart and he believed the Council’s policy needed updating as soon as possible. Cllr S Bütikofer stated that she agreed with the comments of Cllr Seward, and added that whilst the issue was raised in relation to discussion around anti-Semitism, the policy must be updated to cover all communities. She added that big increases in hate crimes such as islamophobia were being seen, and it was important to address these issues.

The Chairman stated that the Committee needed to decide how the issue should be addressed, and suggested that it could form part of the work of the Scrutiny Panels that were in the process of being established.

Cllr J Toye stated that all Members needed to be involved, and that the Council should be sure not to exclude any groups from this involvement. He then referred to planning policy, and stated that ‘access to all’ should be a meaningful statement. The Chairman agreed but reminded Members that they needed to agree how to take the work forward, and suggested that everyone could provide input to the process at work-stream level.

The HLS suggested that officers could draft a policy if the Committee were to request resource for this as part of its recommendation.

Cllr G Mancini-Boyle suggested that that this should be the start of a talking point, and the policy would need to be continually reviewed and monitored.

Cllr N Pearce stated that he was supportive of updating the policy via a sub-Committee or Scrutiny Panel approach.

Cllr L Shires stated that there had been a clear response from the HLS, and the important thing was to get moving, which meant that the recommendation should ask for officer resource to begin drafting a new policy.

It was proposed by Cllr G Mancini-Boyle and seconded by Cllr J Toye that SLT allocates the officer resource to draft a new Equality and Diversity Policy, and that the new policy be reviewed by the relevant Scrutiny Panel.

RESOLVED

To request that SLT allocates the officer resource to draft a new Equality and Diversity Policy, and that the new policy be reviewed by the relevant Scrutiny Panel.