On 31 October 2006 we responded to the Commission for Racial Equality stating that the detailed comments provided will be used to inform our work to review the race equality scheme in the future.
Progress against the action plans detailed in the race equality scheme is reviewed as part of our annual departmental report and we will publish the first report on the equality schemes in 2008.
(2) how race equality impact assessments and departmental consultation exercises are taken into account in his Department’s policy making process;
(3) whether any new mechanisms for (a) monitoring, (b) consultation and (c) responses to consultation in relation to the Race Equality Scheme have been put in place by his Department;
(4) how his Department ensures that existing policies are assessed in accordance with the Race Equality Duty; and whether his Department has identified any adverse implications for some racial groups resulting from departmental policies.
BERR follows Government-wide guidance on the conduct of consultations and impact assessment. A new impact assessment process was launched in May 2007. Equality impact assessments are an integral part of that process.
Officials from across BERR are being trained in the new procedures. We aim to ensure that equality impacts are properly considered as part of the evidence base in the policy development process.
BERR and its Agencies recognise the importance of monitoring our policies and services for impacts on race equality and obtaining feedback from stakeholders.
When BERR published its race equality scheme in June 2006 we reviewed and updated guidelines first issued in 2003 and incorporated them into a ‘Toolkit for Equality Duties’. This includes advice on different monitoring methods including statistical analysis, qualitative analysis and customer surveys. No departmental policies to date have been assessed as having adverse implications for racial groups.
Progress against the action plans detailed in the race equality scheme is reviewed as part of our annual departmental report and we will publish the first report on the equality schemes in 2008.