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Equality Act 2010
LegislationGB

Equality Act 2010

UK-wide anti-discrimination statute covering protected characteristics including sex and sexual orientation.

Last refreshed: 22 May 2026

Key Question

How did the Equality Act 2010 shape the Welsh gender-zip bill withdrawal?

Timeline for Equality Act 2010

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Common Questions
What does the Equality Act 2010 cover?
It prohibits discrimination on nine protected characteristics including sex, race, age, disability, and sexual orientation, across employment, services, and public functions.
Did the Equality Act 2010 affect the Welsh Senedd's gender-zipping bill?
Cross-party legal advice in 2024 suggested mandatory gender zipping could conflict with the Act's protected-characteristic provisions, contributing to the Senedd's withdrawal of the bill on 24 September 2024.
What is the Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act?
The PSED requires public authorities to have due regard to equality when exercising their functions, including conducting equality impact assessments on major policy decisions. It is named in the Essex JR pre-action letter as a ground for challenging the LGR programme.

Background

The Equality Act 2010 is the UK's consolidated anti-discrimination statute, replacing earlier laws including the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and Race Relations Act 1976. It prohibits direct and indirect discrimination, harassment, and victimisation on nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

The Act applies to employment, services, and public functions across Great Britain and Northern Ireland (with some carve-outs). It became central to the Senedd Cymru (Electoral Candidate Lists) Bill debate: cross-party legal advice in 2024 suggested that mandatory gender-zipping of closed party lists could conflict with the Act's protected-characteristic provisions, particularly regarding candidates who do not fit a binary male/female sorting. This legal concern contributed to the Senedd's 40-12 decision on 24 September 2024 to withdraw the bill.

In May 2026, the Act's Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) was cited as one of six legal grounds in the Essex County Council pre-action protocol letter challenging Local Government Reorganisation. Reform councillors argued the MHCLG had failed to Conduct a proper equality impact assessment before issuing the Essex (Structural Changes) Order. For the 2026 Senedd election the Act's withdrawal of the gender-zip bill leaves candidate-list ordering entirely to parties.

More questions
How does the Equality Act 2010 affect council reorganisation decisions?
The Act's Public Sector Equality Duty requires the government to assess the impact of reorganisation on protected-characteristic groups. Essex councillors argue MHCLG failed this duty before issuing the structural-changes order.Source: Lowdown
Why was Wales's gender-zip bill withdrawn due to the Equality Act?
Cross-party legal advice in 2024 found that mandating binary male/female list alternation could conflict with the Act's gender-reassignment and other protected-characteristic provisions, leading to the Senedd's 40-12 vote to withdraw the bill.Source: Lowdown
What are the nine protected characteristics in UK equality law?
Age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.
Source Material
Equality Act 2010 - WikipediaEquality Act 2010 - legislation.gov.uk