Call for pay equality audits for BAME and disabled government employees

All levels of government and public bodies should reveal pay gaps for ethnic minority and disabled staff, the Lib Dems have said.

The party says pay audits would provide evidence of “unfair disadvantage” experienced by minority groups in the public sector.

Currently, public bodies must publish information on the gender pay gap and occupational segregation within their organisations under the public sector equality duty.

But this does not require figures relating to race, disability or other protected characteristics to be revealed.

The Lib Dems have previously revealed a lack of representation of BAME and disabled people in senior management positions.

Unveiling some of the party’s equalities pledges, leader Willie Rennie also called for a new commission to tackle violence against women and girls.

He said: “When I'm out running up hills before dawn or canvassing in the evening, I rarely have to fear for my safety. That should be the experience for everyone but it's not.

“It is horrifically clear that many women don’t have the same privilege. The murder of Sarah Everard and the conversations that have followed have shone a light on this.

"It is why a priority in the next parliament needs to be a commission on violence against women and girls with cross-party backing.”

Sarah Everard was killed earlier this month when walking home from a friend’s house on Clapham.

It led to vigils and protests across the country as women called for more to be done to tackle violence against women.

Baroness Helena Kennedy is currently chairing a working group looking into the potential criminalisation of sexual harassment, including whether to make misogyny a standalone offence. It is expected to report back later this year.