§ Baroness AmosMy right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made the following Ministerial Statement.
I wish to advise the House that on 14 August 2004, I will announce a public consultation exercise in respect of a proposed gender equality strategy, the Government's high-level policy for tackling gender inequalities in Northern Ireland.
This consultation follows our fulfilment of a commitment given by the previous Northern Ireland Executive, in its Programme for Government (2001–04) to bringing forward and implementing a cross-departmental strategy to tackle gender inequalities.
Copies of the Consultation Paper Gender Matters—Towards a Goss Departmental Strategic Framework to Promote Gender Equality for Women and Men 2005–2015 have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.