Equality Bill [HL]

I should say straight away that I am grateful to the noble Lords, Lord   Dholakia and Lord Lester, for bringing forward the amendment, which enables us to discuss the concerns raised by the Joint Committee on Human Rights. I understand their concerns. We are willing to consider the principles behind the amendment, even if we cannot accept that the wholesale removal of Clause   54(4)(f) is the right way forward. It is a matter for discussion. In preparing the exception for immigration decisions, we did not intend that immigration officials would be able to harass anyone on the grounds of religion or belief. We had in mind two particular instances where we wished to protect the ability of the immigration service to take decisions on our behalf. The first of these was the exercise of the discretion to exclude an individual from this country on the grounds that his presence would be prejudicial to good order—something to which the noble Lord, Lord Lester, has referred. I am sure that noble Lords can think for themselves of individuals who they would wish to see so excluded. We would not wish to see that discretion hampered by the fear of an allegation of discrimination on grounds of belief. The second area with which we were concerned was the need to recognise some individuals as ministers of religion for entry purposes, while refusing to recognise others who might represent different organisations from access to this immigration category. We wish to retain the ability to withhold privileged access to the UK in that way. At the same time, it is important to allow genuine religious groups access to ministers and other workers of their faith, for the support and encouragement of their belief. So, we accept that the current wording of Clause   54(4)(f) is wide and are considering, in the light of the JCHR report, whether we can improve it. I am not able to accept Amendment No. 192 as it stands this evening, but we will continue to give thought to the matter, and I hope that in the mean time the noble Lord will be persuaded to withdraw his amendment. We will try to come back with something that meets our joint purpose. Having heard the noble Lords, Lord   Dholakia and Lord Lester, I think we have the same intent and purpose. It may be that Clause 54(4)(f) does not quite deliver what we jointly seek.