Anti-discrimination laws under fire again from think tank
IMPLEMENTING anti-discrimination legislation on disability in Guernsey could cost the States £2.3m. in the first year, and £1.8m. a year from then on, the independent think-tank Gpeg has claimed.
Founded by leading business figures Lord Digby Jones, Jon Moulton, Connie Helyar-Wilkinson and Susie Crowder, the Guernsey Policy and Economic Group published a report this week on the impact of the proposed legislation, which was approved by the States last year.
It is the third time in the past four months that it has spoken out against the disability element of the proposals.
In its research, Gpeg said it found the scale of the issue in the Guernsey context was not large, and the proposed definition of disability was ‘woefully drafted and far too wide’.
According to the group, anyone could self-identify as disabled.
‘It is fair to say this definition is revolutionary in flavour, seriously idealistic and readily disputed,’ it said in a statement.
‘Taken literally, the proposed definition of disability for the proposed new ordinance would have every Guernsey person defined as disabled. By contrast, the more conventional medical model tends to believe that curing or at least managing meaningful illness or disability revolves around identifying the illness or disability from an in-depth clinical perspective, understanding it, and learning to control and/or alter its course. Where improvement or cure cannot be affected then mitigation needs to be applied.’
Under the timeline agreed by the previous States, by the end of 2022 employers and service providers will not be allowed to discriminate against someone on the grounds of disability, race, carer status, sexual orientation and religious belief.
The second phase of the legislation was scheduled for 2024 to include the further grounds of sex and age discrimination.
Gpeg did concur that there was a ‘strong moral case’ against most forms of discrimination, and wanted its comments read in the context that it is in favour of measures to end it.
‘While we agree that protection is required for those who are meaningfully discriminated against, any legislation needs to be proportionate, well drafted, relevant and fully costed, complete with a proper impact assessment,’ it said.
The report considered by the States last summer included indicative set-up costs of £350,000 for government. Gpeg said this was seriously undershot and also claimed that costs to employers could run as high as £250,000 a year, with a ‘huge and disproportionate effect on the bottom line’ of the island’s SMEs.
If cases were to reach grievance procedures and legal claims, costs would continue to escalate, it warned. Gpeg also criticised a lack of effective consultation with businesses and concerns about priorities and a lack of proportionality.
Opinion Page 16
