Memorandum by Help the Aged
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Help the Aged is an international charity
working to free disadvantaged older people from poverty, isolation
and neglect. Help the Aged campaigns for change in government
policy, undertakes research into the needs of older people and
provides local services in communities across the UK and overseas
which alleviate hardship today and prevent deprivation tomorrow.
1.2 Help the Aged has a long history of
working on equality and human rights issues, particularly as they
relate to age. We have played a significant part in the debate
leading to the establishment of the Commission for Equality and
Human Rights, particularly as one of the founding members of the
Equality and Diversity Forum. Our Scrap It campaign on
age discrimination helped bring the issue to wider public attention,
and we worked alongside Government and other stakeholders towards
the institution of new law on age discrimination in employment
and training. We have recently launched a new campaign, Just
Equal Treatment, calling for legislation on age discrimination
in the provision of goods, facilities and services, and a positive
duty on public authorities to promote age equality. As part of
this we have been working closely with teams undertaking both
the Equalities Review and the Discrimination Law Review.
2. SUMMARY
— Help the Aged warmly welcomes the
committee's decision to further investigate the Government's work
on equality. We feel that there is often a lack of scrutiny of
this area, leading to a sense of low priority.
— We have warmly welcomed the progress
that this Government has made in tackling key equalities and human
rights issues, for example, in the introduction of anti-discrimination
laws in the provision of goods, facilities and services for sexual
orientation and religion and belief, and the development of new
positive duties on public authorities for disability and gender.
— We have also welcomed the introduction
of new legislation on age discrimination in employment and training,
although we were disappointed that the Government waited until
the very last minute to introduce this law, and then did so in
a weakened form.
— We remain concerned that age discrimination
is the "poor relation" of the equalities world—highlighted
particularly by the continuing lack of legal protection against
age discrimination, especially in the area of goods, facilities
and services (where every other equality strand now has protection).
— Help the Aged wants to see the Government
making a clear statement of its resolve to tackle age discrimination,
through legislation and proactive work to target ageist attitudes
and behaviours throughout society.
3. ISSUES FACED
IN THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF
THE NEW
COMMISSION FOR
EQUALITY AND
HUMAN RIGHTS
3.1 Help the Aged has warmly welcomed the
establishment of the new CEHR. We believe that a single, integrated
commission will be much better placed to tackle the real issues
faced by people in their day to day lives—by breaking down
the barriers between so-called equality "strands".
3.2 However, we are concerned that the way
in which the Commission is being established, and the climate
in which it is doing so, will mean that age issues are neglected.
3.3 There is a real risk that the legacy
of the three existing commissions—the Disability Rights
Commission, the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Commission
for Racial Equality—will dominate the agenda of the CEHR,
particularly in its early stages. This is not just because the
key issues which remain the focus of each of the existing commissions
are well understood and well publicised (eg the gender pay gap,
the poor employment position of those with disabilities and the
high profile race and community issues), it is also because of
the legal and practical requirements around transfer of staff,
assets and expertise from these commissions to the new body. The
CEHR will have to work hard to address these issues.
3.4 There is a further risk that amongst
the new equality strands—sexual orientation, religion/belief
and age—age will lose out. This is partly due to the considerable
media and political attention focussed on issues around sexual
orientation and religion/belief, particularly as a result of recent
conflict, but also a product of the fact that the legislative
position of age remains substantially weaker—with weak employment
law and no ban on age discrimination in the provision of goods,
facilities and services—giving the Commission less teeth
in the area of age.
3.5 These factors are further compounded
by the relatively quiet voice of older people in the equalities
debate. Age discrimination is a relatively new concept in the
public arena and older people have not been particularly vocal
in their clamour for equality—in part because the language
remains unfamiliar. This can lead to the impression that age discrimination
is "less of an issue"; however, we believe that older
people's lack of powerful voice should not mean that they are
overlooked in the fight against inequality—rather the contrary.
3.6 Help the Aged is concerned that any
early indications of an apparent hierarchy of equality strands—a
sense that some are more equal than others—will damage the
ability of the CEHR to establish itself as a voice for equality
for all. However, without equal legal protection against all forms
of discrimination, it will be hard to combat this impression.
3.7 Help the Aged believes that it is vital
that the Government addresses these issues, yet at present their
resolve to do so appears weak (see below).
4. THE GOVERNMENT'S
ROLE AND
RESPONSIBILITIES IN
TAKING FORWARD
THE RECOMMENDATIONS
WITHIN THE
EQUALITIES REVIEW
The Equalities Review
4.1 The Equalities Review presented a very
helpful analysis of the breadth of the equality challenge facing
the UK. Whilst it was necessarily a very broad brush assessment
of the issues, it brought out some key areas of action for the
Government, which we believe must be taken forward.
4.2 First and foremost the Review highlighted
the need for a Single Equalities Bill, which we wholeheartedly
support. It particularly argued for a "strong, integrated
public sector duty, covering all equality groups, with a focus
on outcomes and not process",[42]
which we are also keen to see. We comment on this in more detail
below.
4.3 Secondly, the Review highlighted the
need for much better collection and analysis of data across Government.
Again, we believe this is a key issue. In the area of age there
are significant gaps in the data collected, and also in how data
that is collected is used. We believe that the current Comprehensive
Spending Review, and the development of new Public Service Agreements,
present an ideal opportunity to address these issues by revisiting
what information would be needed to really know if age equality
were being made a reality.
4.4 The Review also highlighted the problem
of the confused state machinery that supports equality work at
present, highlighting the need for a more consistent approach
across Government; a view which was recently backed by Trevor
Phillips, who said:
"we need... every lever that is possible
to ensure that the whole of the Government's machine is paying
attention, is being measured and is being scrutinised on its performance
in relation to fairness and equality and human rights".[43]
4.5 Help the Aged is concerned that current
state machinery around Equality exacerbates the "poor relation"
status of age and leaves us falling into the gaps between Government
initiatives, and means that there is little focus on the issues
around age.
4.6 Whilst the Department for Communities
and Local Government holds much of the responsibility for equality—across
race, faith, gender, sexual orientation, community cohesion—age
and disability remain the responsibility of the Department for
Work and Pensions. This arrangement is particularly concerning
for age as an equality strand because, whilst the disability agenda
is well resourced within the DWP with its own Minister and many
staff, the age agenda is more of an "add on" to the
pensions agenda. The position of age is further confused by the
fact that responsibility for age legislation on employment remains
with the Department of Trade and Industry, and human rights (a
key area for older people) with the Ministry of Justice.
4.7 This fragmentation leads to increased
complexity, a lack of clear, joined up messages from the top,
uncertain modes of engagement, stop start funding from/for different
parts of the machine and means that it is much easier for some
voices to be heard in the wider equality debate—most of
which lies with the DCLG—than others.
4.8 We believe that the Government must
make clear with whom the equality agenda for age rests, and make
a clear statement of its intentions and aspirations in this area.
5. THE POSSIBLE
CONTENTS OF
THE DISCRIMINATION
LAW REVIEW
AND A
SINGLE EQUALITY
BILL
5.1 Help the Aged has been extremely concerned
by the ongoing delays to the work of the Discrimination Law Review
and the expected Green Paper on Discrimination Law.
5.2 The review of discrimination law represents
a key opportunity to address the current lack of legal protection
against age discrimination, and it is therefore vitally important
to the well-being of older people that it should progress.
5.3 We welcome the intention, through the
Review and subsequent Bill, to consolidate existing equality laws.
We believe that this would help to reconcile the differences and
inconsistencies contained in current equalities legislation and
would make the law simpler and more workable.
5.4 However, of central importance to us
is also the work to build on existing legislation to afford equal
protection to all groups against discrimination, wherever it occurs.
5.5 When the Government put through the
Equality Bill—bringing in the CEHR, but also legislating
for a Gender Equality Duty, and goods, facilities and services
legislation covering religion and belief and also sexual orientation—Help
the Aged (and other age stakeholders) argued that the gaps in
the law around age should also be addressed. At that time Ministers
made clear to the House that the question of protection for age
would be addressed through the Discrimination Law Review. However,
the ongoing delay in the emergence of the Review's findings gives
us concern that this resolve has now weakened. We believe that
legislation on age discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities
and services is vital and that the work on a Single Equalities
Bill must now progress.
5.6 Individually and collectively, the impact
of discriminatory practices on older people is profound.[44]
As long as age remains the only equality strand without protection
from discrimination in the area of goods, the message is clear:
older people are second class citizens whose needs are less important
than those of others.
5.7 Age discrimination legislation in the
provision of goods, facilities and services, coupled with a positive
equality duty for age, would prohibit the unequal treatment of
older people in this area and send a clear signal to society that
age discrimination in any context is unacceptable. It would also
prompt the gradual elimination of discriminatory practices and
empower older people to challenge ageism and discriminatory practices
when they arise.
5.8 Without such legislation, Help the Aged
believes that the significant progress already made in eliminating
discrimination on the grounds of age—the Employment Equality
(Age) Regulations 2006, the National Service Framework for Older
People (2001), Fair Access to Care Services (2002), Age Positive
and Opportunity Age—is significantly undermined.
Evidence of Discrimination in Goods, Facilities
and Services
5.9 Recent studies have found that:
— More adults (29%) reported suffering
age discrimination than any other form of discrimination[45]
, with 28% of respondents citing that they had experienced ageism
in the last year;[46]
— In the UK, 34% of people aged 65
years and above said that older people experience age discrimination
in their daily lives. 73% of people more generally agreed that
older people face discrimination on grounds of their age in everyday
life;[47]
— 40% of adults now think that age
discrimination is a serious issue.[48]
Examples of age discrimination in the provision
of goods, facilities and services in both the private and public
sectors, include:
— Car Insurance: increased premiums
based on age (and not driving record), and refusals to quote for
those aged 75 years and over;[49]
— Travel Insurance: increased premiums
based on age (often to the point that cover is simply unaffordable
after a certain age), and declined cover;[50]
— Disability Living Allowance: those
aged 65 years and over who become disabled are not eligible to
receive this allowance. They qualify instead for an Attendance
Allowance, which takes longer to qualify for, is less generous
and does not include any money to cover mobility costs;
— Social Care: levels of funding allocated
to support older people, both in the community and in residential
care, are less generous than for other age groups, rarely matching
the levels of need;[51]
— Health Care: differential treatment
based on age and not clinical need. For example, women over 70
years are no longer automatically called for breast screening,
despite widespread evidence of a clinical need;
— Mental Health: certain, specialist
mental health services are only available to those aged under
65 years, despite the fact that 40% of GP attendees, 50% of general
hospital patients and 60% of care home residents are older people
with mental health problems;[52]
— Social Inclusion: the shortage of
benches, seats and public toilets in public areas particularly
disadvantages older groups and can lead to social isolation;
— Transport: design of vehicles, hard
to read timetables and inaudible public address systems create
discriminatory barriers to travel for older people.
5.10 We believe that consistent, robust
law is urgently needed in this area. We recognise that such legislation
would need careful drafting to avoid unintended consequences but,
over the extended period of the Discrimination Law Review, much
thinking has been done in this area and we believe that it is
now time to progress.
5.11 As well as assisting many older people,
a Single Equality Act would greatly assist the CEHR in its duties
to reduce inequality, eliminate discrimination, strengthen good
relations between people and promote and protect human rights.
The present plethora of equalities legislation can only impede
the CEHR in making progress in this area.
5.12 The proposed Single Equalities Bill
is of vital importance to older people and the wider equalities
agenda. It is vital that it is widely publicised, scrutinised,
debated and supported as it goes forward.
42 The Equalities Review, "Fairness and Freedom:
The Final Report of the Equalities Review" (February 2007),
page 115. Back
43
Trevor Phillips (Chair of the CEHR), uncorrected evidence to
Communities and Local Government Select Committee, 24 April 2007. Back
44
Help the Aged, "Everyday Age Discrimination: what older
people say" (2004). Back
45
Age Concern, "How Ageist is Britain?" (2005), a study
carried out in partnership with the University of Kent. Back
46
Age Concern, "Ageism: A benchmark in public attitudes in
Britain" (2006). Back
47
Help the Aged, "Spotlight Report 2006: spotlight on older
people in the UK" (2006). Back
48
TNS Survey on behalf of Age Concern England, representative sample
of 2113 adults in Great Britain, July 2006 (unpublished). Back
49
Help the Aged and Age Concern, "Insurance and Age: Exploring
behaviour, attitudes and discrimination" (2007), research
undertaken by CM Insight and Andrew Smith Research. Back
50
Help the Aged and Age Concern, "Insurance and Age: Exploring
behaviour, attitudes and discrimination" (2007), research
undertaken by CM Insight and Andrew Smith Research. Back
51
Research undertaken by Katbamna, Martin and Parker; Leicester
Nuffield Research Unit for Help the Aged (2002). See also, Age
Concern, "Age of equality? Outlawing age discrimination beyond
the workplace" (May 2007). Back
52
Mind, "Access all ages" (October 2005). Back
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