Church schools will be legally barred from excluding non-Catholics from consideration for teaching posts under the draft Equality Act being presented in Parliament today, the civil liberties ministry has confirmed.

While the government has looked into the issue of employment discrimination in Church schools before, it has previously determined that the matter fell within a ‘margin of appreciation’ that did not constitute a breach of existing laws.

But the current loophole, cited as evidence of “systematic discrimination” against non-religious people in a recent international report, will be closed by the new Equality Bill, which significantly widens the extent of protection against discrimination in both the public and private sector.

Described by minister Helena Dalli today as the “capstone” on the government’s wave of pro-equality legislation, the draft law will prohibit discrimination between people on any grounds in all walks of life, including employment, education, advertising, and providing goods or services.

It will also replace the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality, a government agency, with a fully autonomous commission which will have the power to administer sanctions including daily fines.

The head of the new Human Rights and Equality Commission will be selected by Parliament on the basis of a two-thirds majority.

Apart from widening the definition of discrimination to include issues such as political belief, the draft law will introduce the notion of intersectionality, allowing people to sue for discrimination on the basis of two or more combined identities.

Insurance companies will also be prohibited from setting higher premiums for people based on their race, sexuality, or a number of other ‘protected characteristics’.

The bill, which will have its first reading in Parliament this evening and is likely to be implemented in 2017, attracted some criticism from stakeholders during public consultation earlier this year.

In a position paper published last month, the Church said the legislation went beyond EU directives and encroached on religious freedoms.

The Church said the “vague and broad” definitions of ‘harassment’ and ‘victim’, and their application beyond the area of employment, posed a clear risk of subjective interpretation and would have a negative impact on the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

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