Badenoch declares war on public sector equality duty: ‘Restore common sense’
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch is set to deliver a major speech on Tuesday calling for the outright scrapping of the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), arguing the legal requirement has been hijacked to promote what she describes as “dangerous and divisive agendas.” The proposed abolition marks the first step in a Conservative programme to “restore common sense” to public decision-making, the party said.
Badenoch will argue that the duty, which compels public bodies such as schools, hospitals, and councils to actively promote equality when making decisions, has “become a minefield that exposes almost every significant public decision to legal challenge.” The speech comes at a politically sensitive moment, following the murder of Henry Nowak and a police response that has reignited national debate over equality policies and their practical impact on public safety.
What is the Public Sector Equality Duty?
Introduced in 2010 as part of the Equality Act, the PSED applies to public authorities in England, Scotland, and Wales. It requires these bodies to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between people with different protected characteristics. These characteristics include age, disability, race, pregnancy, sex, and sexual orientation.
Government guidance has long stressed that the duty should be applied “in a proportionate way” depending on the circumstances, and organisations are warned against taking an “overly bureaucratic and burdensome approach.” However, Badenoch and her allies contend that in practice, the duty has been used to justify policies that prioritise identity-based outcomes over merit, efficiency, or public safety.
A political tightrope: Labour, Reform, and public mood
Badenoch’s move is an attempt to carve out a distinct Conservative position on equality legislation, sandwiched between a Labour government that has strengthened equality protections and Reform UK, which wants to go further by scrapping the entire Equality Act.
Labour, meanwhile, is promoting its own alternative vision. The government has announced a new equality and diversity strategy that focuses on socioeconomic background, with a particular emphasis on recruiting and advancing working-class people within the civil service. The contrast is stark: Labour wants to expand the equality framework to include class, while Badenoch wants to dismantle a key pillar of the existing system.
The timing is noteworthy. Badenoch’s speech follows the murder of Henry Nowak and subsequent questions about how equality policies may have influenced police responses. While the precise link remains contested, the case has given fresh ammunition to critics who argue that diversity and inclusion initiatives can sometimes conflict with operational effectiveness.
Why the equality duty matters: Legal and practical stakes
The Public Sector Equality Duty is not merely a symbolic commitment. Since its introduction, it has been used by individuals and organisations to challenge public authority decisions in court. In 2011, the High Court ruled that Somerset and Gloucestershire County Councils had breached the duty when they attempted to withdraw funding from more than 20 libraries. A year later, Devon County Council was found to have failed in its duty when setting fees for private care homes, after around 100 care home owners argued the fees did not cover their costs and that the council had not fully considered the impact on vulnerable residents.
More recently, in 2020, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission concluded that the Home Office had not complied with the duty in relation to its “hostile environment” immigration policies and their impact on members of the Windrush generation. The duty, in other words, has teeth.
Conservatives argue the duty has become a ‘minefield’
Badenoch’s core argument is that the PSED has strayed far from its original purpose. Instead of simply preventing discrimination, she will claim it has become a tool for activists to push agendas that are “dangerous and divisive.” Her speech is expected to highlight cases where schools and hospitals felt compelled to prioritise equality considerations over educational standards or medical need.
The Conservative leader will frame the abolition as a necessary step to free public servants from bureaucratic fear. “Teachers should be able to teach, doctors should be able to treat, and police should be able to police without constant fear of a legal challenge based on a poorly defined duty,” she is expected to say.
Labour’s working-class focus
In response, Labour has signalled it will not only retain the duty but expand its scope. The government’s new strategy will require civil service internship programmes to prioritise candidates from working-class backgrounds. This marks a shift from a focus on race and gender to class as a primary lens for equality interventions.
Critics of Labour’s approach argue that it risks creating a new form of bureaucratic box-ticking, this time based on socioeconomic status. Supporters, however, say it addresses the most persistent barrier to social mobility in modern Britain.
The broader context: A global reckoning with equality policies
Badenoch’s proposal is not happening in a vacuum. Across the Western world, there is growing debate about the effectiveness and unintended consequences of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. In the United States, several states have moved to roll back DEI programmes in public universities. In the United Kingdom, the debate has intensified after high-profile incidents, including the Nowak case, that critics say reveal flaws in how equality duties are applied in practice.
‘Masculine energy’ and cultural backlash
The Conservatives’ push also taps into a wider cultural conversation about gender and public policy. Recent headlines have asked whether a “masculine energy” is coming to the UK, reflecting a broader backlash against what some see as an overcorrection in favour of women and minorities. Badenoch’s speech is likely to appeal to voters who feel that traditional common sense has been lost in a maze of equality regulations.
However, the move carries risks. Scrapping the PSED could leave vulnerable groups with fewer legal protections. Disability rights organisations, women’s groups, and race equality advocates are already mobilising against the proposal. They argue that the duty is a vital safeguard that ensures public bodies do not overlook the needs of minorities when making decisions that affect everyone.
Reform UK: The wild card
Reform UK, which has been gaining in opinion polls, wants to go even further by scrapping the Equality Act in its entirety. Badenoch’s more limited proposal is seen by some analysts as an attempt to head off defections to the right. By taking a clear stance against the PSED, she can claim to be taking action without endorsing Reform’s more radical position.
But the risk for the Conservatives is that they end up pleasing no one. Centrist voters may see the move as extreme, while right-wing voters may view it as insufficient. The Liberal Democrats have already condemned the proposal, calling it “a reckless attempt to divide the country for political gain.”
What changes: The road ahead
If Badenoch’s proposal gains traction, it would represent the most significant overhaul of equality legislation in the UK since 2010. Scrapping the PSED would not abolish the Equality Act itself, but it would remove a key enforcement mechanism. Public bodies would no longer be legally required to actively consider equality when making decisions, a change that could have wide-ranging implications for how services are designed and delivered.
Potential impact on public services
Hospitals might no longer need to conduct equality impact assessments before changing patient services. Schools could make admissions or disciplinary decisions without formal consideration of how they might disproportionately affect certain groups. Police forces could prioritise operational strategies without weighing equality implications. For supporters, that means efficiency and common sense. For opponents, it means a return to a time when discrimination was easier to overlook.
Legal challenges and parliamentary arithmetic
Any move to scrap the PSED would require primary legislation. With Labour in government and holding a majority, the likelihood of such a bill passing is currently low. The Conservatives are in opposition, so Badenoch’s speech is more about setting a marker for the next general election than immediate legislative change.
Nonetheless, the debate is already shifting the political terrain. Labour will be forced to defend the status quo, while Reform UK will try to push the Conservatives further. The coming months are likely to see a fierce battle over the future of equality law in Britain.
Conclusion: A defining moment for Badenoch’s leadership
Kemi Badenoch’s call to scrap the Public Sector Equality Duty is a high-stakes gambit. It positions her as a disruptor willing to challenge orthodoxies that have held sway for over a decade. It also reflects a broader global trend of questioning whether diversity and equality mandates have gone too far.
Whether the public agrees remains to be seen. For now, the Conservative leader has thrown down a gauntlet that neither Labour nor Reform UK can ignore. The debate over equality, common sense, and the role of the state in shaping social outcomes is far from over.
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