§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
As regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, why it is necessary to permit Catholic sixth-form colleges to discriminate against non-Catholics in their admission policies in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved; arid [HL475]
As regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, what is the "minimum percentage of Catholic students" that Catholic sixth-form colleges should be permitted to require in order to ensure that the Catholic character and ethos of the colleges is preserved; and [H L476]
As regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003; what proportion of students at the Catholic sixth-form colleges are non-Catholics; and [H L477]
As regards their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003, whether their proposal would permit a Christian Foundation school or college to discriminate against Jewish students in order to preserve their Christian character and ethos;and [HL478]
How their proposal to amend the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 will ensure that the admission arrangements for Catholic sixth-form colleges do not discriminate in a way that is incompatible with the United Kingdom's obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and European Community law. [HL479]
§ Baroness Ashton of UphollandThe right of Catholic sixth-form colleges to give preference on admission to Catholic students, particularly in areas where Catholic post-16 education is either not available or is insufficient in schools, is important to ensure that these students are as able to access a Catholic sixth-form education as their contemporaries elsewhere. Catholic sixth-form colleges were established to 71WA provide a Catholic education for Catholic students and seek to offer places for all Catholic students who apply. Their ability to do so and to fulfil their mission would be significantly curtailed in cases of oversubscription were they not able to give such preference.
The Catholic character of sixth-form colleges is maintained by the leadership of the principal and key members of staff. It is supported by all those who work in the colleges, strengthened by the commitment of Catholic students and their parents and valued by students of other faiths and none and their parents who wish to participate in the work and life of the colleges. A college's success in fulfilling its mission is measured by reference to all these criteria as well as by the numbers of Catholic students and others who join, and wish to join, the institution. Consequently, the viability of a college as a provider of Catholic education is a more complex judgment than the application of a minimum number criterion and is always reviewed in the context of local circumstances.
In 2002 the proportion of non-Catholics in the 16 Catholic sixth-form colleges varied from 38 per cent to 63 per cent.
The regulations, which are yet to be laid, are specifically drafted to permit only those institutions listed in a schedule to give preference in their admissions in respect of non-vocational provision to persons of a particular religion or belief in order to preserve that institution's religious ethos. The amendment is not specific to any religion or belief and the schedule lists Catholic sixth-form colleges because they are the only religion or belief based institutions incorporated into the further education sector. We have no plans to incorporate any other religion or belief-based institutions into the further education sector. Nothing in the regulations allows an institution to discriminate otherwise against a person of a particular religion or belief.
The regulations will amend s20(1)(b) of the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/1660). The amendment will not apply to any admission to a course of vocational training, and is therefore consistent with European Community law, in particular Council Directive 2000/78/EC ("Establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation" OJ L303,02.12/2000 p16). The regulations will comply with the international instruments referred to, incuding the ECHR, if any rights in those instruments are engaged.
The amendment is limited so that it goes no further than necessary to meet concerns as to the need to protect the religious character of the institutions. The amendment will only apply to listed colleges so the extent of its effect is minimised although the substantive provision itself will be generic and could, in principle, apply to institutions of other religions on an equal basis. The amendment will also only apply in relation to Regulation 20(1)(b) (the ability to admit) and does not therefore permit discrimination in the terms of, or post, admission.
72WAThe test imposed by the amendment will also be strict. Preferential admission must be shown as necessary to maintain an institution's religious ethos. This will ensure that any preferential admissions are justified and proportionate in the circumstances.