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Recast Directive

I wish to notify Parliament that Great Britain has fully implemented the recast directive 2006/54/EC, as required by the European Union. The recast directive came into force on 15 August 2006 with a primary aim of ensuring the implementation of the principle of equal treatment between men and women, in matters of employment and occupation in member states. Our domestic law is fully compliant with the requirements of the recast directive, which repeals and replaces four existing EU directives and incorporates some established principles of case law from the European Court of Justice. In Great Britain we already protect people from discrimination on the grounds of sex, through the Equal Pay Act 1970 and the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and the anti-discrimination provisions in the Social Security Act 1989 and the Pensions Act 1995. We are, therefore, in a position to notify the European Commission that we have transposed the recast directive into our domestic law, in the way set out in the transposition table which will be placed in the Library. The Equality Bill will bring together the provisions of the Sex Discrimination and the Equal Pay Acts and the relevant aspects of the Social Security and Pensions Acts along with the law governing discrimination on other grounds. We will ensure that the Equality Bill too is fully compliant with European legislation.