Equality Bill

I apologise to the noble Lord in return. I can confirm that his amendment had been accepted by the Government. We made a bit of a boob by not inviting him to move it at the correct time. We shall ensure that it is included on Report. I thank my noble friend Lady Turner of Camden for tabling the amendments, which allow me to clarify the situation. I hesitate to use "clarify" in the presence of the Lords spiritual who are out in force again, but I hope that, this time, harmony will prevail. Faith schools are an important part of our education landscape and part of the educational choice open to parents. To maintain their religious character, they must be able, where appropriate, to appoint teachers of the same faith. The provisions in the School Standards and Framework Act that we are debating preserve a situation which has existed for virtually as long as we have had publicly funded schools in this country. My noble friend’s first amendment in the group, Amendment 106A, is distinct from the others, as she said, and deals with the situation in foundation and voluntary controlled schools with regard to reserved teachers. Where there are more than two teachers in these schools, at least one of them must be reserved; that is, they must be appointed taking account of their ability to teach religious education in accordance with the tenets of the religion of the school and with the intention that they should do so. I think that it is accepted that a school with a religious ethos would wish to maintain the traditions of that ethos, especially in the way that they teach religious education. When the Education and Inspections Act amended the School Standards and Framework Act in 2006 to allow head teachers to be reserved teachers, it was done not to extend this exception but to help small and mainly rural schools. These schools often have to appoint head teachers who not only fulfil that role but also take on a variety of teaching roles. It was put to us that small schools were experiencing difficulties because their head teacher could not also be appointed to teach religious education, as the law did not allow this before 2006, so we amended the law to make life easier for those schools. We have no evidence that teachers’ prospects were reduced by the Government’s helpful amendment, but I invite my noble friend, if she needs to, to write to me if she has such examples. The amendment was compatible with EC Directive 2000/78 because it simply applied an existing regime, which was applicable only to those specifically appointed to teach religious education, to those who were also head teachers. The other three amendments mirror amendments laid in the other place during previous rounds of this Bill’s scrutiny. The issue here is certain freedoms given to schools with a religious character and how they recruit and discharge their teaching staff. Nothing in the Bill will change the position of faith schools or diminish their ability to deliver an education in line with their religious character. However, I understand that there are concerns about the SSFA and what it may potentially allow faith schools—in particular, voluntary-aided faith schools—to do with regard to their teachers. Sexual orientation, in particular, has been debated in this context. Let me be clear: discrimination because of a person’s sexual orientation is unlawful and nothing in the School Standards and Framework Act would allow it; nor do the faith bodies which run most of our faith schools seek to discriminate on these grounds. My noble friend Lady Turner asked about the compatibility of the Schools Standards and Framework Act provisions with the European directive. Article 4.2 of that directive provides that member states may maintain national legislation in force at the date of adoption of the directive. It also provides for future legislation to allow differential treatment on religious grounds where it reflects national practices and where there is a, ""genuine, legitimate and justified occupational requirement"." The wording of the directive was negotiated and agreed by the UK with precisely the circumstances covered by the SSFA in mind. In order for schools to maintain an ethos based on their faith, the Government think it is reasonable for them to be able to ensure that they have a strong and dedicated teaching staff who understand and identify with the religious ethos of the school. That is what these exceptions provide. The Government have done a great deal to enable faith-based schools to maintain their religious ethos. The quid pro quo is that we expect them to be scrupulous in their compliance with the relevant employment legislation. Anxieties have also been expressed about how the School Standards and Framework Act may apply to the dismissal of teachers. We need to be clear about what the Act allows. Section 60(5) says that regard may be had, in connection to termination of employment, to a teacher’s behaviour which is incompatible with the tenets of the relevant faith. It does not say that such behaviour can necessarily be taken as grounds for dismissal. Having had regard to whatever the conduct in question might be, it may be proper for a school to take disciplinary action but it may also be entirely improper. In those circumstances, nothing in the Act would prejudice a claim for unfair or constructive dismissal. The SSFA provisions must also, as I have already said, be read alongside other relevant employment legislation. I assure my noble friend that, if the Government thought that a problem was caused by the provisions of the School Standards and Framework Act, we would do something to remedy it. At present, we are not convinced that there is any reason to do so, and I therefore ask my noble friend to withdraw her amendment.