mr president it is clearly right that we end the complicated patchwork of laws with different people protected against discrimination in different situations in favour of a single equality regime
the woman refused a bank loan the disabled person refused access to a building the gay man refused accommodation a black person barred from a club and so on should all be protected on the basis of similar principles
i just want to mention two issues
one concerns protection from harassment
it is rightly made clear in the text that what is barred is the creation of an intimidating environment for an individual not perceived offence towards a group
it is important to be very firm about the preservation of freedom of speech which is usefully stressed through a specific mention which is added by the parliament
on faith schools i fully support the right of parents to have their children educated within the principles of a particular faith so long as that faith itself does not propagate discriminatory and prejudicial attitudes
but we must not condone the creation of ghettoes where only children of a specified faith are admitted to a school and others are excluded
the commission text allows discriminatory access and i am not persuaded that amendment fifty-one resolves the problem
i will probably vote against both
