Category Archives: Type

18 September 2023 ~ Public consultation (NI) on provision of free period products – Northern Ireland Assembly – Closing date

A public consultation on the provision of free period products was launched on 26 June 2023.

The consultation states that period products are essential items for personal care and should be available to everyone who needs them, regardless of their economic status.

To address this need, the Assembly passed the Period Products (Free Provision) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022(external link opens in a new window / tab) (“the Act”). The Act places importance on respect for dignity and aims to remove financial barriers to accessing period products.

Launching the consultation, Siobhan Broderick, Director of Equality, Rights & identity within The Executive Office said:

“The Assembly recently made a ground-breaking piece of legislation called the Period Products (Free Provision) Act to remove financial barriers to accessing period products. This is an important piece of legislation that will provide the basis for introducing vital support to tackle issues around period dignity.

“We believe this is a matter of basic dignity. No-one should be prevented from going to school, college or work because they cannot access period products when they need them. To shape what this scheme will look like, the Department is now consulting with the public on what type of products should be available, and how and where they should be obtained.”

The consultation which runs for 12 weeks was launched on Monday 26 June 2023 and closes on Monday 18 September 2023.

The consultation document and details of how to respond can be accessed via the following link: www.executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk/consultations/consultation-free-period-products

It is an online consultation, accessible through the following link: https://consultations.nidirect.gov.uk/teo/provision-of-free-period-products-consultation(external link opens in a new window / tab)

Notes: 

  1. Following engagement with a range of key stakeholders and colleagues working in this field locally and in other jurisdictions, the Executive Office is now seeking views in terms of what the provision of free period products should look like.
  2. It is an online consultation, accessible through the following links:
  1. Hard copies of the consultation document, and alternative formats, can be requested by sending an e-mail to: products@Executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk
  2. The deadline for responses is Monday 18 September 2023 at 11:59pm.
  3. If you have any queries, please contact via E-mail: products@executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk or Telephone: 028 9052 2907

https://www.executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk/news/launch-public-consultation-provision-free-period-products

 

July 12, 2023

18 September 2023 ~ Public consultation (NI) on provision of free period products – Northern Ireland Assembly – Closing date

A public consultation on the provision of free period products was launched on 26 June 2023.

The consultation states that period products are essential items for personal care and should be available to everyone who needs them, regardless of their economic status.

To address this need, the Assembly passed the Period Products (Free Provision) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022(external link opens in a new window / tab) (“the Act”). The Act places importance on respect for dignity and aims to remove financial barriers to accessing period products.

Launching the consultation, Siobhan Broderick, Director of Equality, Rights & identity within The Executive Office said:

“The Assembly recently made a ground-breaking piece of legislation called the Period Products (Free Provision) Act to remove financial barriers to accessing period products. This is an important piece of legislation that will provide the basis for introducing vital support to tackle issues around period dignity.

“We believe this is a matter of basic dignity. No-one should be prevented from going to school, college or work because they cannot access period products when they need them. To shape what this scheme will look like, the Department is now consulting with the public on what type of products should be available, and how and where they should be obtained.”

The consultation which runs for 12 weeks was launched on Monday 26 June 2023 and closes on Monday 18 September 2023.

The consultation document and details of how to respond can be accessed via the following link: www.executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk/consultations/consultation-free-period-products

It is an online consultation, accessible through the following link: https://consultations.nidirect.gov.uk/teo/provision-of-free-period-products-consultation(external link opens in a new window / tab)

Notes: 

  1. Following engagement with a range of key stakeholders and colleagues working in this field locally and in other jurisdictions, the Executive Office is now seeking views in terms of what the provision of free period products should look like.
  2. It is an online consultation, accessible through the following links:
  1. Hard copies of the consultation document, and alternative formats, can be requested by sending an e-mail to: products@Executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk
  2. The deadline for responses is Monday 18 September 2023 at 11:59pm.
  3. If you have any queries, please contact via E-mail: products@executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk or Telephone: 028 9052 2907

https://www.executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk/news/launch-public-consultation-provision-free-period-products

 

July 12, 2023

Istanbul Convention finally comes into force – but the Government stops short of protecting all women – AI UK

  • Earlier this year the UK ratified the ‘gold standard’ convention to prevent and combat violence against women and girls and domestic violence
  • However, the Government has reserved article 59 of the treaty opting out of protecting migrant women
  • ‘The Government must immediately remove the reservation to this article and provide equal protection for every woman in need, irrespective of migration status’ – Sacha Deshmukh

Responding to the UK’s ratification of the Istanbul Convention coming into force today (1 November), Sacha Deshmukh, Chief Executive at Amnesty International UK, said:

“Amnesty welcomes the Istanbul Convention finally coming into force in the UK, but let’s not kid ourselves that the Government has done enough to protect women from domestic violence.

“By quietly reserving article 59 of the treaty, the Government is still failing some of the most vulnerable women living in this country: migrant women.

“Not being obliged to provide support and protection to migrant women effectively reinforces the two-tier system of support for victims, as some remain discriminated against because of their migration status.

“The Government must immediately remove the reservation to this article and provide equal protection for every woman in need.

“All women, regardless of where they come from, deserve protection against violence.”

UK’s ratification: Too little too late?

Earlier this year the UK ratified the Istanbul Convention, which entered into force  on 1st November 2022.

However, the Government reserved article 59 which sets out state obligations to provide protection to migrant women. By doing so the Government is also acting against one of the main principles of the convention which requires countries to implement its provisions without discrimination on any grounds, to ensure no one is left behind.

The Government’s motivation for this was allegedly to wait on evidence arising from its Support for Migrant Women pilot which concluded in the summer.

The pilot scheme was set up as part of the Domestic Abuse Act to provide support and gather evidence on needs for women with no recourse to public funds (NRPF), even though specialist domestic violence services have highlighted the discrimination faced by victims with NRPF for decades.

The limited length and resources of the pilot – £1.4 million to cover one year – was not adequate to provide support for all the women requiring assistance. According to specialist domestic violence service Southall Black Sisters £1.4m would only support around 500 women for 3 months, each over a one-year period – meaning many women would continue to be excluded from protection and crisis support.

Amnesty is calling on the Government to remove the reservation to article 59 and provide equal protection for all women irrespective of migration status immediately.

https://www.amnesty.org.uk/press-releases/uk-istanbul-convention-finally-comes-force-government-stops-short-protecting-all

 

November 1, 2022

CPS sets out the law on street-based sexual harassment

Street harassment such as cyber-flashing, up-skirting or the exposure of genitals in a public place are crimes which can and will be prosecuted the CPS has stressed, as new legal guidance is published today.

The prosecution guidance on public order offences has been updated to include for the first time a specific chapter on charges relating to public sexual abuse. It follows a stark report published last year from the All-Party Parliament Group (APPG) for UN.

Women which looked at the prevalence and reporting of sexual harassment in public spaces. The report found that 71 per cent of women in the UK have experienced some form of sexual harassment in a public space, but the incident was not reported to police in 95 per cent of cases.

Siobhan Blake, CPS national lead for Rape and Serious Sexual Offences said: “It is sickening that seven in 10 women – almost three quarters – have been subjected to this disgusting behaviour.

“It is equally concerning that so few incidents of sexual harassment in public are reported. The law is clear that if someone exposes themselves, tries to take inappropriate pictures or makes you feel threatened on the street, these are crimes and should not be dismissed.

“Everyone has the right to travel on public transport, dance at a festival or walk the streets without fear of harassment. Feeling safe should not be a luxury for women.”

The report from the APPG also showed that incidents of sexual harassment rose to 80 per cent among 18–34-year-olds with 98 per cent never being reported. More than half of the women polled said they didn’t think the incident was serious enough to report.

In a move to encourage more victims to come forward – and to make sure prosecutions are carried out consistently – the new chapter clarifies the law around potential offences and evidence prosecutors will need. Specific offences include:

  • Exposure: A person commits an offence if they intentionally expose their genitals and intend the person seeing them would experience alarm or distress.
  • Up-skirting: Up-skirting is taking a photograph or video under someone’s clothing without their consent and the perpetrator not reasonably believing consent had been given. It is done with the intention to humiliate, alarm or distress the victim or gain sexual gratification.
  • ‘Cyberflashing’: Categorised as a communications offence, ‘cyberflashing’ involves perpetrators sending unwanted sexual images to strangers in public places, via data sharing services such as Bluetooth or Airdrop.
  • Section 4A of the Public Order Act 1986: This involves the intention to cause harassment, alarm, or distress by words or behaviour. The effect on the victim is an essential element, with prosecutors required to prove someone actually suffered harassment, alarm or distress and the defendant acted intentionally.

In developing the updated guidance, the CPS drew on insights from a Community Accountability Forum focused on street-based harassment, which explored individual’s personal   experiences of harassment and how the CPS can help tackle this criminal behaviour.

Siobhan Blake added:

“We understand why women may feel reluctant to come forward if they are victims of these upsetting and frightening incidents, but we want to send a clear message that this intimidating behaviour can be a criminal offence.

“The law is there to protect you and help make our streets safer. We will do all we can, working with police, to support those who come forward.”

Notes

  • The new legal guidance is published here
  • The CPS published its updated five-year rape strategy in February this year
  • The All-Party Parliament Group for UN Women’s  report, “Prevalence and reporting of sexual harassment in UK public spaces” can be read here

https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/cps-sets-out-law-street-based-sexual-harassment

 

August 9, 2022

Hidden bias in job adverts deters 50% of female applicants – Study findings

Gender biased language in job adverts deters as many as one in two female applicants from applying for roles, according to a study from Openreach.

The researchers created a new, consciously unbiased, job description for an entry level engineering role, with the language of the new advert carefully crafted to appeal to men and women equally, whilst actively combating some of the challenges women face in the pre-application phase of job hunting.

When looking at the gender-inclusive advert as part of the study, women’s interest in the role increased by more than 200%, with 60% reporting that this was down to the way it was written.

A third of women (31%) felt the original advert was more suited to a man than a woman, compared with just 13% of women for the new advert, in the survey of 2,000 UK women.

Latent bias is deeply ingrained in the UK workplace, according to the study. A quarter of women (24%) still feel certain careers are better suited to men than women, with 80% discounting engineering automatically.

However, more than half (56%) were interested in the engineering job role once it had been rewritten and the word “engineer” had been taken out.

Three quarters of women felt they needed to fit the skills profile of a job specification by 70% or more, and half (51%) by 80% or more, before applying for any job.

Over half (55%) of women are considering a new career as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the research found.

The study found that businesses can be more inclusive by improving the language used in job adverts by removing latent gendered phraseology and construction in the language used and including key skillset descriptors.

Part of a longer report at https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/hidden-bias-in-job-adverts-deters-50-of-female-applicants-140758137.html

January 21, 2021