Schedule 3
Equality Bill
2:45 pm
Mark Harper (Shadow Minister, Work & Pensions; Forest of Dean, Conservative)
The problem is that as soon as the exemption is removed, all commanders in the field making decisions, whether they are making them for good reasons or bad, are potentially subject to being dragged into a court and being second-guessed by a judge sitting in London, even though those decisions might be made in very difficult conditions. That is the problem; it is not about whether those decisions are right or wrong. I am simply arguing that the armed forces have policies to encourage, for example, those with disability—the area I know best—to the extent possible, but those decision are ultimately best taken by the Secretary of State for Defence, who is accountable to this House, rather than giving them to a judge.