Engender blog
All of Engender’s latest news. Reports, reviews, books, articles, and information from across Scotland’s women’s sector.
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Guest post: Explaining Secondary Legislation and the 'rape clause'
Juliet Swann is a policy and parliamentary consultant, Engender board member, and an expert on all things to do with participation in democracy. Here she takes a deep dive into the mechanics of the secondary legislation surrounding the 'family cap' and 'rape clause':
5 things you need to know about the 'family cap' and 'rape clause'
As the 'rape clause' and 'family cap' continue to hit the headlines, we've produced a brief rundown of just what exactly is going on.
What is the ‘rape clause’?
In
order to understand the so-called ‘rape clause’, first you need
to know about the ‘family cap’. This is part of UK Government
changes to social security (known as ‘welfare reform’ ) that
limits child benefit and child tax credits to the first two children
in a household. Families will not receive child tax credits or the
child element of Universal Credit payments for third or subsequent
children.
Guest Post: Why the dialogue on street harassment needs to remain open
Lindsay Linning is a MSc student at Edinburgh University in Sociology and is currently preparing her dissertation on gender-based street harassment, as well as working in conjunction with Hollaback! Edinburgh. Here she writes on her experiences of street harassment and the results of a recent Hollaback! survey.
Guest Post: Gender matters in refugee policy
Dr Sophie Cartwright is a former volunteer at the Unity Centre in Glasgow and a regular contributor to BrightGreen. Here she writes on why 'safe return review' and deportation is cruel and dangerous - and will disproportionately impact women and girls who have fled gender-based violence.
One last chance to scrap the rape clause
Last week, the UK government introduced a law that will limit social security payments to the first two children in a family. In short, the UK government introduced a ‘family cap’, telling families who rely on social security for their well-being that help will only be provided if you have a maximum of two children. The draft law, however, has an exemption. A ‘family cap’ will not apply to your family if a third or subsequent child is the result of rape. Known as the ‘rape clause’, this new policy will force a woman to disclose that she is the victim of rape at a time and in a context not of her own choosing.
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Engender Briefing: Pension Credit Entitlement Changes
From 15 May 2019, new changes will be introduced which will require couples where one partner has reached state pension age and one has not (‘mixed age couples’) to claim universal credit (UC) instead of Pension Credit.
Engender Parliamentary Briefing: Condemnation of Misogyny, Racism, Harassment and Sexism
Engender welcomes this Scottish Parliament Debate on Condemnation of Misogyny, Racism, Harassment and Sexism and the opportunity to raise awareness of the ways in which women in Scotland’s inequality contributes to gender-based violence.
Gender Matters in Social Security: Individual Payments of Universal Credit
A paper calling on the Scottish Government to automatically split payments of Universal Credit between couples, once this power is devolved to the Scottish Parliament.
Gender Matters Manifesto: Twenty for 2016
This manifesto sets out measures that, with political will, can be taken over the next parliamentary term in pursuit of these goals.
Scottish NGO Briefing for UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women
Joint briefing paper for the UN Rapporteur on Violence Against Women.
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