MPA budget and equalities priorities

Report: 12
Date: 7 September 2006
By: Chief Executive and Clerk

Summary

This report asks members to agree the draft equalities priorities for 2007 - 2008 to be included in the main draft Budget submission for 2007 – 2010 as requested by the Greater London Authority (GLA). In line with this years 2 stage budget process any early indication of costs will be considered at the joint Finance/Planning and Performance Committee of 21 September. Indicative costs attached to the priorities will be considered at the joint Finance/Planning and Performance Committee of November 9th and Full Authority on 30 November.

A. Recommendations

That members endorse the draft equalities priorities as outlined in paragraph 6 of the report to be included in the main draft Budget submission and agree to refer this to Full Authority for ratification.

B. Supporting information

Background

1. The budget submission to the GLA is a key element of the planning framework which involves developing three-year business plans based on the Mayoral objectives and priorities alongside financial plans.

2. A separate budget and equalities submission is no longer required and equalities priorities are now to be covered in the main Budget submission. This significantly reduces the volume of information presented through the Budget submission process as detailed performance indicator information will be covered in a separate process at the end of the financial year.

3. The equalities process is now divided into two separate parts:

• Part 1: An outline of the key projects & priorities for 2007 – 2010, as well as an update on the objectives outlined in the previous year. This will form part of the overall budget submission which must be submitted to the GLA by 29 September 2006.
• Part 2: A more detailed response with costings of the key priorities and projects for 2007 – 2010. This process ends in mid-2007.

Submission process

4. The work on compiling the budget response has been led by Treasury and Race & Diversity Unit within the MPA and the Diversity & Citizen Focus Directorate in the MPS. Meetings have been held to support officers who are leading on the process.

5. Regular contact was made with GLA officers and meetings have been held in May and July with GLA officers. On the basis of the feedback from these meetings, the MPA/MPS’ budget submission was developed.

MPA key priorities

6. The MPA, through the Race & Diversity Unit, has four major objectives in 2007:

• supporting, challenging and enabling improved performance & monitoring in relation to race, faith, homophobic crime and domestic violence;
• working with the MPS to explore how addressing the needs of disability hate crime can be addressed;
• completing and reviewing the scrutiny recommendations on stop and search; and
• the development of a budget & equalities group to improve equalities governance in both MPA and MPS.

7. Two forums currently exist that look at hate crime to varying degrees in the areas of race, faith, homophobic crime and domestic violence. They are the Race Hate Crime Forum and the MPA Domestic Violence Board. The Race & Diversity Unit needs to ensure that, through both those forums, all hate crimes have a parity of consideration. This is important to achieve the aim of reducing all hate crime and to assist the tackling of hate crime against a backdrop that particular hate crimes may not have a single causation but may involve multiple facets of the lives of Londoners.

8. Disability hate crime presents issues not only as in the preceding paragraph but also in the way that the MPS interfaces with disabled victims of hate crime, particularly in meeting their access needs. That interface must not be seen by disabled people as an extension of the hate crime they have already experienced.

9. The MPA is currently in the midst of an improvement programme to ensure that it is fit for purpose at this time. The changes flowing from this programme will impinge upon the Race and Diversity Unit and its delivery programme may need to be reviewed in the light of those changes. Such a review will also be prompted by any decrease in the staffing of the Unit as a result of budgetary reductions.

C. Race and equality impact

The Budget and equalities process is a key part of ensuring that race, equality and diversity are an integral part of the business planning process. It gives the MPA and the MPS a governance framework around which we can scrutinise our equalities activity and outcomes. This will be enhanced by the group developed as a result of the fourth priority listed in paragraph B6.

D. Financial implications

As part of the budget and equalities process, the costs attached to these projects are still being worked upon at the time of publication of this report. Any early indication of costs will be considered at the joint Finance/Planning and Performance Committee of 21 September. Indicative costs attached to the priorities will be considered at the joint Finance/Planning and Performance Committee of 9 November and Full Authority on 30 November.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: Doug Lewins, Race & Diversity Unit, MPS

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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