---

Equality Bill

My Lords, this is a happy occasion in that the measure before us has already been substantially endorsed in principle by the parties through the vehicle of the Speaker’s Conference. It is to the credit of all the parties to recognise that in the year 2010, through the vehicle of the Equality Bill, an opportunity has arisen to make progress. Anyone who has been involved in party matters, especially election and selection, will be well aware of the sensitive nature of this issue. As I see it, the way in which things have been done in this field has been unaltered for the past 100 years or more. The Government should be congratulated on conceiving the idea of an Equality Bill. When I first heard of the Bill, I certainly knew about inequality in wages and inequality in opportunities, but I did not dream of the range of matters that could be seen to be equal or unequal that has been published here. I think that the safeguards that the Leader of the House has mentioned; that is, adequate consultation—