Engender blog

Today, we joined with 26 organisations working for equality and human rights in Scotland to write to John Swinney 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.

Despite clear evidence raised by equalities groups and by Government itself that that the pandemic has had a greater impact on certain groups of people, 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.

Eilidh Dickson Engender's Policy and Parliamentary Manager, said:

“Since March 2020 women have been experiencing poorer physical and mental health, increased levels of unpaid work, loss of paid work, greater reliance on state support, insecure housing, and increased levels of gender-based violence. Women who are further marginalised because they are part of other oppressed groups, such as women of colour, LB+ and trans women, single mothers, disabled women and primary and secondary carers, have been exposed to even more acute poverty, violence, and exclusion.

For the Scottish Government to have ignored all of this in their Terms of Reference for the Covid-19 inquiry is disappointing, and presents real concerns about the success of the inquiry if it is falling at this first hurdle”

The letter, whose signatories include human rights organisation Amnesty International, Amina the Muslim Women’s Resource Centre, anti-poverty and race equality charities, and groups working to end violence against women, says that they have engaged on multiple occasions with Mr Swinney and officials involved in the inquiry into the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic in Scotland. It goes on to say:

“We did so because of the untold impacts of Covid-19 for our members and communities, and the enormous potential of the inquiry to address both specific harms that have been done and the systemic blindness to equalities that persists across government.”

And urges Mr Swinney to take heed of the lived experience and expertise of those who faced the most disadvantage during the pandemic.

The letter claims that the Scottish Government have not sufficiently prioritised equality and human rights in measures to respond the pandemic and as a result marginalised groups have been isolated even further from social and economic life. The authors call on the Scottish Government to outline how it will address the omission of the equalities and human rights issues to ensure that the inquiry understands and makes recommendations to prevent future impacts for groups whose rights are most undermined.

Read the letter here

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