Equality Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 9:"After Clause 32, insert the following new clause—" ““LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOR PERSONS OR ORGANISATIONS BEING INVESTIGATED ETC. BY THE COMMISSION (1)   This section applies where the Commission is— (a)   conducting an investigation under section 20, or (b)   issuing an unlawful act notice under section 21, or (c)   making an application to a court under section 22(6), or (d)   making an application to a court under section 24, or (e)   bringing proceedings under section 25, or (f)   giving legal assistance to an individual under section 28, or (g)   bringing an application for judicial review under section 30, or (h)   issuing a compliance notice, or making an application to a court, under section 32. (2)   In a case to which this section applies, where the defendant in a court or tribunal case or the subject of the notice or investigation is— (a)   an individual, or (b)   a charity, or (c)   an organisation of the type mentioned in section 57 of this Act,    the individual, charity or organisation shall be granted legal assistance paid for out of central funds to enable them to respond to the case, the notice or the investigation. (3)   The Lord Chancellor shall make regulations providing for payment out of central funds for the provision of such legal assistance. (4)   The sections listed in subsection (1) of this section shall not come into force until the regulations mentioned in subsection (3) have been laid before and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.”” The noble Baroness said: My Lords, I return briefly to my concerns about providing some form of legal aid for charities and religious groups who find themselves on the wrong end of legal action backed by the new Equality Commission. I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Ashton, who took time last week to discuss my concerns. She is a brilliant Minister who makes you feel she is listening to you—and I know she is. Even when she declined to amend the Bill to meet my concerns, she still managed to make me feel as if I was coming away with something. That is quite a skill. Not only does she deserve the honorary degree she received yesterday, on which I congratulate her, but if there were such a thing as an honorary degree in diplomacy she should get that too. However, I remain anxious that, in a legal action over a controversial issue of religious liberties, the enormous financial and legal resources of the commission could be ranged on one side of a legal dispute, leaving a defendant on the other side with limited financial resources at a considerable disadvantage. A church or religious charity being sued would be left passing round the offering plate to raise money to pay lawyers. In these circumstances, even a bad case could make a lot of progress. It could even succeed. The inequality of resources could result in a miscarriage of justice. The noble Baroness, Lady Ashton, does not think that I need to be concerned about any of these things. She does not believe that the commission would ever use its legal powers other than in the most gross and obvious case of discrimination that everyone would think deserved to be outlawed. I hope she is right. But the noble Baroness came to my aid and suggested that if I tabled these amendments she would make statements on the record which would, if I understood her correctly, give a steer to the commission to ensure that it does not use its legal powers in inappropriate ways against religious charities. I am happy to do so. I will sit down and invite the Minister to give her reassurance before withdrawing my amendment. But before I do so, I ask the Minister to respond to a particular argument that I raised on Report. I have received legal advice which suggests that, where human rights issues are at stake, creating a massive inequality in legal resources between the parties—as the Bill does by providing legal assistance to one side but not to the other—may breach the European Convention on Human Rights. I should be very grateful to hear the Minister’s response to that legal argument. I beg to move.