Motion no: 25
The mandate of the NI Assembly passed in march without the completion of legislation designed to outlaw discrimination on the grounds of age, a requirement under the 1998 Belfast Agreement, and the subject of equivalent legislation in England, Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.
The proposed legislation presented last year for consultation from OFMDFM is far from perfect, but it represents an important first step.
The age sector believes that age discrimination legislation in relation to goods, facilities and services must:
- be framed with a strong purpose clause containing a series of clearly articulated goals
- include the public, private and voluntary sector in its scope
- include strong protections for older people across all areas of goods, facilities and services, in particular health and social care and financial services
- include people of all ages in the scope of the legislation
Conference calls on the NIC to pursue this matter with the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister during its Bi-Lateral forum meetings and also to ensure that the passage of this legislation is included in the Programme for Government for the incoming NI Executive.
