Scott Arthur

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) regulates equality law across England, Wales and Scotland. The EHRC is independent of the government and makes its own enforcement and regulation decisions.

The EHRC has assessed the costs for service providers and others. The draft Code of practice for services, public functions and associations acknowledges service providers might comply with the law in different ways due to different factors such as physical building constraints.

Overall, providers should take a proportionate approach with a view to everyone having access to essential services. The Code cannot cover every single individual circumstance, but aims to give organisations guidance with key explanations and worked examples.

We received an updated draft Code of Practice from the EHRC on 13 April. We cannot comment on the contents of the draft Code, however, we intend to lay it in May.

We have always been clear that associations should set their policies in line with the law.

If associations are uncertain as to how to apply the Equality Act 2010, they should obtain specialist legal advice.

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.

I refer the Hon. Member to Lord Collins’s answer to Lord Rooker’s oral question in the House of Lords, dated 2 February 2026, which provides the information you requested:

“The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations provides guidance on all protected characteristics, not solely on sex and gender reassignment.

The EHRC has submitted its draft Code to Ministers, and we are reviewing it with the care it deserves. It is crucial that providers have legally robust guidance on how to apply the Equality Act, which is why we are considering the draft Code properly.”

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has revised its Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations following the six week consultation and submitted it to the Minister for Women and Equalities.

The Parliamentary process for laying the Code in Parliament is set out in the Equality Act 2006. The Government will consider the draft updated Code and, if the decision is taken to approve it, the minister will lay it before Parliament. Parliament will then have 40 sitting days to consider the Code, at which point it will be published.

This Government’s position is that conversion practices are abuse. Such practices have no place in society and must be stopped.

This is a complex issue, and it is imperative that we get this right.That is why, in collaboration with Ministerial colleagues, my officials and I are working hard to draft legislation that protects LGBT+ individuals from these abusive practices.

We remain committed to bringing forward a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, starting with publishing our draft Bill later this session for pre-legislative scrutiny.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has revised its Code of Practice for Services, Public Functions and Associations following the six week consultation and submitted it to the Minister for Women and Equalities.

The Parliamentary process for laying the Code in Parliament is set out in the Equality Act 2006. The Government will consider the draft updated Code and, if the decision is taken to approve it, the minister will lay it before Parliament. Parliament will then have a 40 day period to consider the Code, at which point it will be published.

The Government is committed to commencing the socio-economic duty in the Equality Act
2010. The duty will require public bodies, when making strategic decisions, to consider
actively how their decisions might help to reduce the inequalities associated with socio-economic disadvantage.

We will work in partnership with public authorities, civil society and others in order to ensure that the implementation of the duty is as effective as possible.

As part of this, we have included questions in relation to the socio-economic duty in a call for evidence on equality law, which was launched on 7 April and will be open until 30 June. This will enable public authorities and others to input into plans in relation to the socio-economic duty at an early stage. We will update further on our work to commence the duty once the call for evidence has closed and responses have been analysed.

There is no place for misogyny in our society, which too often leads to violence. Tackling this is a top priority for this Government, with a mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade. We will deliver a cross-Government transformative approach, underpinned by a new strategy to be published in the summer.

Education has an important role to play in reducing misogyny. The Department for Education is reviewing the RSHE guidance to ensure that it supports schools to tackle harmful behaviour, as this Government is determined to ensure that misogyny and sexual violence is stamped out and not allowed to proliferate in schools, or elsewhere.

The Government is also taking steps to tackle misogyny online through the Online Safety Act, as large social media providers are required to have systems in place to remove illegal and harmful content such as misogyny. Ofcom is currently consulting on draft guidance which sets out nine areas where technology firms should do more to improve women and girls’ safety by taking responsibility.

Following the Government's review of arms-length bodies, the UK Space Agency (UKSA) is now an integral part of the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade and its staff are departmental officials. This transition does not alter UKSA’s funding or remit.

UKSA expertise continues to drive implementation of policy, funding programmes, sector support and promotion of the UK’s civil space capabilities. The Government is providing £7.8 billion over this spending review period until 2029/30, of which £3.3 billion is allocated to UKSA. This is the highest level of investment in space ever made by the UK.

The British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) scheme is a voluntary, non-statutory dispute resolution scheme, set up by the industry and independent of government.

DBT funds the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) who accredit and regularly audit BVRLA against key principles including neutrality, independence and effective complaints handling under a new mandatory accreditation and monitoring framework in the 2026 ADR Regulations.

The new 2026 ADR Regulations replace the 2015 ADR Regulations, introducing mandatory accreditation of all ADR providers, strengthened accreditation and monitoring standards and new sanctioning powers to tackle poor performance.

Pay and terms and conditions of employment, provided they are lawful, are, in general, a matter for private businesses to agree with their workforce and their representatives.

The Secretary of State met Dave Ward, General Secretary of the CWU, and Daniel Křetínský, the owner of EP Group, on 16 February and again on 19 March 2026 to facilitate continued discussions on these matters.,

The Plan to Make Work Pay will boost fairness in the workplace, ensure equality of treatment and opportunity, and support low-paid workers.

The Government is committed to ensuring markets work well for consumers and businesses. As the UK’s lead consumer and competition authority, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has a statutory duty to promote competition for the benefit of consumers. It is the role of the CMA to examine potential breaches of competition law, including abuse of a dominant position, and investigate markets if it thinks there are competition or consumer problems. As an independent authority, the CMA has discretion to investigate competition matters which, according to its prioritisation principles, it considers most appropriate.

This Government is committed to rooting out human rights and labour abuses from global supply chains. We support responsible business conduct standards to accelerate the positive contribution of companies to sustainable development and help businesses avoid and address any direct or indirect adverse impacts.

In the Trade Strategy, we launched the Responsible Business Conduct review, to evaluate the UK’s current approach, and assess the merits of alternative policy options to support responsible business. Ministers will update Parliament when the review is complete.

All consumer products, including e-bikes and e-scooters, must be safe when placed on the market. Businesses are responsible for ensuring that their products comply with the relevant product safety regulations and they must include any instructions needed for safe use or safety warnings.

In addition, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency conducts market surveillance activities of e-scooter retailers to ensure they are being sold lawfully and that retailers are making legal restrictions on e-scooter use sufficiently clear.

The Government is inviting views and evidence to inform the development of a modern, proportionate and enabling licensing system.

A Call for Evidence is currently open until 6 November in order to gather views and evidence to inform proposals for reforms to licensing. This is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/reforming-the-licensing-system.

No assessment has yet been made of the impact of any reforms on anti-social behaviour. Any legislative changes will be subject to an impact assessment, consultation and parliamentary scrutiny.

The Government is inviting views and evidence to inform the development of a modern, proportionate and enabling licensing system.

A Call for Evidence is currently open until 6 November in order to gather views and evidence to inform proposals for reforms to licensing. This is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/reforming-the-licensing-system.

No assessment has yet been made of the impact of any reforms on violence against women and girls. Any legislative changes will be subject to an impact assessment, consultation and parliamentary scrutiny.

The Government is inviting views and evidence to inform the development of a modern, proportionate and enabling licensing system.

A Call for Evidence is currently open until 6 November in order to gather views and evidence to inform proposals for reforms to licensing. This is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/reforming-the-licensing-system.

No assessment has yet been made of the impact of any reforms on public health. Any legislative changes will be subject to an impact assessment, consultation and parliamentary scrutiny.

The Department for Business and Trade is committed to making the UK an outstanding place for life sciences companies to start and scale. The Office for Life Sciences has a target to see more scale-up finance raised by life sciences businesses in the UK than anywhere else in Europe. A dedicated stream of work is being delivered to support small and medium-sized biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.

The Department of Health and Social Care and Department of Science, Innovation and Technology are developing tailored approaches for SMEs in parallel, to ensure that they can access the UK’s research infrastructure effectively.

Motability Foundation is independent of government and regulated by the Charity Commission, so is wholly responsible for the terms and the administration of the Scheme. DWP does however work closely with Motability Foundation and is responsible for the disability benefits that provide a passport to the Motability Scheme.

As a Government, we are committed to the growth of the automotive sector and provide support through programmes such as DRIVE35, which will invest up to £2.5bn to support zero emission vehicle manufacturing in the UK, and the Electric Car Grant, which narrows the upfront cost between petrol and electric vehicles, giving thousands more drivers access to electric vehicles

Government recognises the significant challenges and distress that serious childhood illness can cause. The department will consult on Hugh’s Law in 2026. In line with the Consultation Principles, we will ensure that the consultation lasts a proportionate amount of time, taking into account the nature and impact of the proposals. Options for consultation must be carefully developed in an evidence-based manner to ensure that robust proposals are put forward for consideration.

In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review into the UK's approach to responsible business conduct, focused on tackling human rights and labour abuses, modern slavery and environmental harms and addressing such issues.

No. As my Rt. Honourable friend the Minister for Defence Procurement has previously confirmed to the House, UK suppliers do not manufacture or export components that are exclusively used on the Israeli variant of the f-35 aircraft.

The Government recognises the crucial role of universities in the UK's innovation ecosystem and in delivering the skills needed to drive growth as part of the Industrial Strategy. Education policy is devolved in Scotland, and it is for the Scottish Government to consider the broader impact of developments in the education sector, including of any potential staff cuts in Scottish universities.

Accelerating the rate of innovation and increasing the adoption and diffusion of ideas, technologies, and processes is an essential step for growing productivity of our growth-driving sectors. My officials are working with the Scottish Government on how we can drive growth in Scotland and the wider UK within the context of our Industrial Strategy. This includes the role of innovation in helping us reach our shared growth objectives. This partnership will help make the Industrial Strategy a UK-wide effort and support the considerable sectoral strengths of Scotland.

The Government recognises the crucial role of universities in the UK’s innovation ecosystem and in delivering the skills needed to drive growth as part of the Industrial Strategy. My officials have discussed our Industrial Strategy plans with Universities Scotland.

The Industrial Strategy Green Paper identified eight growth-driving sectors. All sectors can shape and will benefit from policy reform through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, with growth that supports high-quality jobs and ensures that the benefits are shared across people, places, and generations.

Advanced production machinery and robotics are central to increasing productivity across the manufacturing sector. The Made Smarter Adoption Programme is helping SME manufacturers adopt industrial digital technologies such as robotics and autonomous systems to increase their productivity and efficiency.

The Industrial Strategy Green Paper identified eight growth-driving sectors. All sectors can shape and will benefit from policy reform through the Industrial Strategy’s cross-cutting policies alongside the broader Growth Mission. This will create the pro-business environment for all businesses to invest and employ, with growth that supports high-quality jobs and ensures that the benefits are shared across people, places, and generations.

The UK’s agriculture food and drink sector plays a significant part in the UK economy, with £146.7bn contribution to GVA and 4.2m jobs (13% UK total employment). Government is engaging with the food, drink and farming industries regularly on how the sector can grow and invest.

The UK Government is committed to advancing free and fair trade around that world that is inclusive, sustainable and reduces poverty.

We remain committed to engaging civil society as we develop the new Trade Strategy.