[Guernsey] Celebration for passage of anti-discrimination law

Campaigners in Guernsey are celebrating the recent passage of new anti-discrimination legislation, BBC News reports.

The new law, published earlier this year, makes it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of race, disability and sexuality.

The legislation will officially come into effect on October 1, 2023.

Under the law, islanders are reportedly protected from discrimination based on religion, belief, race, sexual orientation, disability and carer status. It is due to be phased in over six years.

Former Guernsey States deputy Michelle Le Clerc was president of the Employment and Social Security Committee for four years between 2016 and 2020. She was among those attending the celebratory gathering.

Ms Le Clerc played a key role in drafting the policy and legislation and said she was pleased to see the defeat of an amendment that would have made small businesses exempt.

She said, "I'm absolutely over the moon. I was absolutely overjoyed when amendment eight was defeated, and I think really from there, I felt confident that we were going to get this over the line.

"I was delighted when it was a majority decision."

Ms Le Clerc said that, despite the legislation being passed, the fight had "only just begun".

"Roll on the implementation date, and then, of course, there are the extra grounds of discrimination that will need to come back to the States, and I think particularly on the gender, well that will be an interesting debate, let's put it that way.

"It's not over, it's just begun", she said.

Sadness

Disability access consultant and equalities trainer Aindre Reece-Sheerin was also present at the October 4 celebration.

Mr Reece-Sheerin said, "This is slightly tinged with sadness because it took 15 years to get here.

"But we got there in the end and I think that's the thing that we're celebrating today, that we are actually there."

He added that the new law should be "both carrot and stick".

"If someone is being discriminated against, we will have first obviously the tribunal, and then if that fails and we can't get a resolution, then it would go directly to court," he said.

Source: BBC News

(Link and quotes via original reporting)

Campaigners in Guernsey are celebrating the recent passage of new anti-discrimination legislation, BBC News reports.

The new law, published earlier this year, makes it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of race, disability and sexuality.

The legislation will officially come into effect on October 1, 2023.

Under the law, islanders are reportedly protected from discrimination based on religion, belief, race, sexual orientation, disability and carer status. It is due to be phased in over six years.

Former Guernsey States deputy Michelle Le Clerc was president of the Employment and Social Security Committee for four years between 2016 and 2020. She was among those attending the celebratory gathering.

Ms Le Clerc played a key role in drafting the policy and legislation and said she was pleased to see the defeat of an amendment that would have made small businesses exempt.

She said, "I'm absolutely over the moon. I was absolutely overjoyed when amendment eight was defeated, and I think really from there, I felt confident that we were going to get this over the line.

"I was delighted when it was a majority decision."

Ms Le Clerc said that, despite the legislation being passed, the fight had "only just begun".

"Roll on the implementation date, and then, of course, there are the extra grounds of discrimination that will need to come back to the States, and I think particularly on the gender, well that will be an interesting debate, let's put it that way.

"It's not over, it's just begun", she said.

Sadness

Disability access consultant and equalities trainer Aindre Reece-Sheerin was also present at the October 4 celebration.

Mr Reece-Sheerin said, "This is slightly tinged with sadness because it took 15 years to get here.

"But we got there in the end and I think that's the thing that we're celebrating today, that we are actually there."

He added that the new law should be "both carrot and stick".

"If someone is being discriminated against, we will have first obviously the tribunal, and then if that fails and we can't get a resolution, then it would go directly to court," he said.

Source: BBC News

(Link and quotes via original reporting)