Engender blog
January 2022 - Policy Round Up
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Each month we share a summary of the policy work Engender has been doing . You can find all of our latest briefings and publications here, or in the links below.
Equal representation in politics
We all know that women are underrepresented at all levels of politics in Scotland, and that increased diversity in politics has a positive impact on all aspects of public life.
The current lack of robust, detailed and intersectional data on who our representatives are is a major barrier to progress in terms of gender parity in our political institutions at both local and national levels. As well as voluntary processes to gather this data, such as that done by Women 50:50 and other campaign groups, we’re pleased that Scottish Government have also revealed their plan to collect data on the protected characteristics of candidates standing for election.
Jessie Duncan, who runs our Equal Representation in Politics project, has responded to the Government’s plan – welcoming the intention, but making the case that such data collection should be mandatory in order to gather the most robust evidence. We hope that the introduction of a framework for collecting this data will be a crucial step in addressing the persistent inequalities which exist within political representation in Scotland. You can read the full response online here.
#ScrapTheCap: A campaign to end the benefit cap
Last month Engender joined the Poverty Alliance and over 45 civil society organisations to call on the UK Government to remove the benefit cap, which places a limit on the total amount of benefit payments a person or family can receive. As of May 2021, 190,000 households are affected by the cap, receiving on average £55 per week less in support than they would if the cap was not in place. There are a total of 6437 households currently capped in Scotland, and single parents with children (9/10 of whom are women) are disproportionally affected by the cap: 67.8% of capped households in Scotland are single parent households.
Women are twice as likely to be dependent on social security as men, and the way the benefit cap is designed means that those who require the highest level of support from the benefit system are the most likely to be affected. You can find out more about the campaign by reading the Scrap the Cap briefing online here, and get involved by sharing information about the campaign on social media and by contacting your local MP to encourage them to join in calling on the UK Government to remove the cap.
Equality and Rights in the Covid-19 Inquiry
Last week we co-ordinated a letter to John Swinney from 27 organisations working for equality and human rights in Scotland expressing our “dismay” and “deep concerns” following the publication of the Scottish Government’s Terms of Reference for a public inquiry into the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland.
You might remember that last year we responded to the Scottish Government's 'aims and principles' for the public inquiry (read it here), and we were therefore so disappointed to see that the Terms of Reference as published make no reference to equality or human rights impacts stemming from the pandemic. Throughout the document, there is no mention of women, Black and minority ethnic communities, disabled people, LGBT+ People, older people, young people persons subject to No Recourse to Public Funds, and other groups who experienced the brunt of the pandemic.
Since then, we're pleased to see that Pam Duncan-Glancy MSP, the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice has echoed our call for a human rights and equalities based approach to the inquiry, and we have been invited to meet with Lady Poole, the Chair of the inquiry.
Response to the EHRC letter to the Scottish Government
At the end of last month, the UK's Equality and Human Rights Commission wrote to the Scottish Government suggesting that proposed changes to the Gender Recognition Act be paused while more work is carried out. This is not a key area of policy work for Engender, but given our previous work on the proposed reforms and the Equality Act 2010, we felt we needed to respond.
You can see our response in a Twitter thread here, where we reiterate our support for the reforms, and ask the EHRC to urgently set out the legal basis underpinning the change in their own position (if this exists). We also link to the legal analysis independently commissioned and peer-reviewed, written for Engender by Professor Nicole Busby, and the recording of the webinar we held on the Equality Act just over a year ago
Supporting Political Parties to achieve Equal Representation in Politics
Political parties have a unique role in achieving equal representation at all levels of government. Engender have been working with partners on the Equal Representation Coalition to develop the Equal Representation in Politics Toolkit, a set of resources to support political parties to assess their current practice and to become as inclusive as possible. The ultimate goal is to see more women, minority ethnic, LGBTI and disabled people get involved, become candidates and get elected. Here, our Equal Representation Development Officer Jessie Duncan writes about representation in Scottish politics and how the Toolkit can support parties to be proactive within their own structures to increase diverse representation.
When it was formed in 1999, Holyrood raised the bar for gender equality in political representation in Scotland (and the UK) with women making up 37.2% of MSPs, reaching a high of 39.5% in 2003. Then followed three successive elections of decline and stagnation, with figures hovering in the 33-35% range.
The early promise of Holyrood as a place where politics can better represent the communities it serves feels alive again after the 2021 election. Significant strides have been made in some areas, with women making up a record 45% of MSPs including the first two women of colour and the first permanent wheelchair user. These are gains to be celebrated, however they did not happen by accident.
GUEST POST: Exploring how local authorities use Equality Impact Assessments
Today we're publishing another post in the series of blogs from two student placements Engender is hosting from the University of Strathclyde Applied Gender Studies and Research Methods course. These blogs explore women's representation and decision-making around women's equality in local authorities across Scotland. You can see other blogs in the series here.
Katie Young graduated from the University of Glasgow with a degree in English Literature in Summer 2020, and is now studying a Master’s degree in Applied Gender Studies and Research Methods at the University of Strathclyde. She is passionate about women’s fiction and empowering girls and young women to fight for gender equality in Scotland through volunteering with Girlguiding, and tweets under @katieeey.
![Graphic with a bright lilac background with left-aligned black quoted text which reads "By taking an approach to gender inequality which is grounded in gender-sensitive data, involving women in decision making and consultation processes and committing to regularly publishing and updating their work [...] councils are able to increase their transparency as well as producing policies that best fit the needs of their local area." The quote is attributed to Katie Young, Student Placement, University of Strarthclyde. In the top right hand corner of the graphic is the Engender logo, a circle with an equals symbol in the centre, in black.](siteimages/Blog/resized/student-blog-katie-young-quotes-square-1080x1080-(1)-400.png)
Following on from my last blog post on Equality Impact Assessment guidance in West Dunbartonshire and Argyll and Bute councils, I’ve been thinking about what Equality Impact Assessments aim to do, how we can use Equality Impact Assessments as a tool to hold local authorities to account to ensure they consider the impact of gender on their policies and procedures, and what might have to be done to improve equalities work within local authorities. By thinking about policy and procedures in a way that is more gender-sensitive, local authorities are not only able to carry out work that is mindful of and meets the needs of the women and those with other protected characteristics in their communities, but also raise the profile of equalities work in the local authority more generally and highlight the difference that this can make to the lives of local people.
GUEST POST: Racism - We reject #NotAll, We demand #NotAtAll
The (much delayed) report from the UK Government’s Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) was released last week, and claimed that many of the racial disparities found in the UK do not have their origins in racism. The report was met with incredulity by people and organisations who witness the myriad ways in which racism and white supremacy still impact on all areas of our politics, economy and society. This guest blog from Dr Shridevi Gopi-Firth explores and rejects the idea presented in the report that because ‘not all’ people are racist, institutional racism cannot exist.
Dr Shridevi Gopi-Firth is a Speciality Doctor in Eating Disorders for NHS Scotland, a ChoosePsychiatry 2020 representative, and Board Director of @Saheliya. She has been invited as BAME expert and peer reviewer for various guidelines and organisations including the upcoming Scottish IGN guidelines for Eating Disorders. Follow her on Twitter @Tychitha.
Nearly every healing or therapy starts with acknowledging your illness. Why is it that we as a society are unable to stand up and say ‘yes, the illness of racism exists’? Why does the Government need to come up with whitewashed reports like the CRED in this day and age to convince the public that racism is a thing of the past? It feels like an insult to our collective intelligence, while we BAME people continue to face so many instances of different levels of racism in our day to day lives.
GUEST POST: Gender representation within Local Authorities
Today we're publishing the second in a series of blogs from two student placements Engender is hosting from the University of Strathclyde Applied Gender Studies and Research Methods course. These blogs explore women's representation and decision-making around women's equality in local authorities across Scotland. You can see other blogs in the series here.
In 2020 Jennifer Robinson graduated with an honours degree in Society Politics and Policy from the University of the West of Scotland. She is now undertaking a Masters in Applied Gender Studies and Research Methods with a particular interest in feminist disability studies. She has previously written for the Glasgow Women’s Library and you can find her tweeting about feminism and disability on twitter @JenRobinson95.
I never imagined that I would be studying for a Master’s degree from the comfort of my own home in Paisley. One perk is being wrapped in a big cosy blanket and pouring myself endless cups of tea while I read about various feminist topics. I am also excited to be undertaking a placement with Engender as part of my degree.
The placement aims to build upon Engender’s Sex & Power report 2020 which showed an overrepresentation of men in positions of power. Particularly, the report found that women made up only 29% of elected councillors at the local authority level. Local councils make decisions which impact gender equality including areas such as social care, leisure, education and so on. However, men and women have diverse perspectives due to inequalities and differing gender roles. Therefore, if councils are dominated by men, they cannot provide diverse representation for their residents. The placement will include a gender audit of representation in local authorities and their policy areas. I will be investigating representation and policy within Renfrewshire Council (my own local authority) and Edinburgh council and documenting my findings through a series of blogs.
Firstly, I wanted to count the number of councillors who were women within Renfrewshire and Edinburgh and compare this to the numbers from the previous council election which took place in 2017. I then looked at the numbers of women in each party and each ward today. Gathering these numbers illustrates the lack of women’s representation within each local. I have broken down these numbers in the following sections.
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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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