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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Crown Dependencies) - Seventh periodic report of States parties [2011] UNCEDAWSPR 24; CEDAW/C/GBR/7/Add.1 (21 December 2011)

Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination

against Women

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

Seventh periodic report of States parties

Addendum

* In accordance with the information transmitted to States parties regarding the processing of their reports, the present document was not formally edited before being sent to the United Nations translation services.

** Annexes can be consulted in the files of the Secretariat.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

(Isle of Man)*^,**

I. General Background

Introduction

1. A general political, legal, social and economic description of the Isle of Man is set out in Appendix XII to the core document of the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies of the United Kingdom (HRI/CORE/1/Add.62 of January 1996) as supplemented by Part I of the initial report for the Isle of Man (CEDAW/C/5/Add.52/Amend.3).

2. This report contains information on developments concerning the implementation of the Convention since the periodic report submitted in 2007 (CEDAW/C/UK/6/Add.1).

Population and economy

3. No new statistical information is available at the time of writing this update report. The next Isle of Man Census, which will be a full Census, will be held on

27 March 2011 and it is envisaged that the complete results will be published early in 2012.

Reservations

4. The Isle of Man Government has noted that the United Kingdom Government has withdrawn a number of reservations to the Convention which formerly applied to the United Kingdom and which continue to apply to the Isle of Man. The Isle of Man Government is in the process of considering which of those reservations that have been withdrawn for the United Kingdom may also be withdrawn for the Isle of Man.

II. Articles

Articles 2 and 3

5. The Isle of Man Government Strategic Plan 2007-2011 established the overall aim of the Government as “to protect and promote the well-being of the family and provide for the economic and social inclusion of all in our community”.

Article 4

6. No new information to report. There are currently no “positive discrimination” measures operated in the Isle of Man. However, as previously reported, there are measures to protect women against discrimination in employment during and following pregnancy.

Article 5

7. No new information to report.

Article 6

8. As previously reported, procuring a person to become a prostitute anywhere in the world or procuring a person to leave the Isle of Man for the purposes of prostitution are offences under the Sexual Offences 1992 (of Tynwald).

9. In relation to trafficking persons (women or men) into the Isle of Man for the purposes of exploitation and prostitution the Island’s legislation was updated in 2008. The Isle of Man immigration and nationality legislation is the United Kingdom legislation as extended to the Island with appropriate modifications. The Immigration (Isle of Man) Order 2008 extended, inter alia, provisions of the United Kingdom Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 and the United Kingdom Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004 to the Island. The relevant sections concerning traffic in prostitution (section 145 of the 2002 Act) and trafficking people for exploitation (section 4 of the 2004 Act) are amongst the provisions that now have effect in the Isle of Man.

Article 7

10. No new information to report. In the Isle of Man no distinction is made between women and men in relation to voting, standing for and holding public office, performing functions within government, and participating in nongovernmental bodies.

Article 8

11. No new information to report. A person who holds a relevant post in the Isle of Man Government may represent the Government when outside the Island, regardless of whether the person is female or male.

Article 9

12. The Isle of Man’s legislation concerning nationality and immigration is the United Kingdom legislation as extended to the Island. The Immigration (Isle of Man) Order 2008 updated the legislation as it has effect in the Isle of Man by extending provisions of the United Kingdom Acts, up to those contained in the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.

Article 10

13. As previously reported, primary, secondary and further education is provided by the Isle of Man Government equally to girls and boys.

14. The Careers Service continues to provide career and vocational guidance to boys and girls and to men and women, without any discrimination on the ground of sex. The Job Centre, which is now a function of the Department of Economic Development, also ensures that all vacancies, other than a very small number of jobs where the applicant’s sex is a genuine occupational qualification, are open to both men and women. During the reporting period the Careers Service transferred from the former Department of Education (now the Department of Education and Children) to the Department of Economic Development.

Article 11

15. The Employment (Sex Discrimination) Act 2000 continues to be the Island’s main statute for the prevention of discrimination in employment. The new rights provided by the Employment Act 2006 and the secondary legislation made under the Act, such as greatly enhanced maternity rights, which were described in the previous report, remain in force.

16. In 2010 the Department of Trade and Industry, which, inter alia, had responsibility for employment law and vocational training policy and funding, was subsumed into a new, larger Department of Economic Development which has assumed the functions of the former Department.

17. The Department of Economic Development is working on an Employment Equality Bill which will make it unlawful to discriminate on additional grounds in employment. The Bill may also further strengthen existing provisions relating to maternity leave and enhance protection against discrimination against pregnant women.

18. In relation to training schemes with which the Department of Economic Development has direct involvement, current figures indicate that in construction-related apprenticeship schemes 240 participants are male and 4 female; in nonconstruction-related schemes (e.g. engineering, hairdressing, information technology) 172 participants are male and 34 female.

Article 12

19. The Isle of Man Government continues to provide the widest range of health services, to the highest practical standard, to all Island residents, regardless of their gender. Hospital-based services are largely provided in the new Noble’s Hospital, situated on the outskirts of the Island’s capital, Douglas.

20. A successful Breast Screening Call and Recall Service, operating on a two-year recall cycle was launched in 2007/08. There are plans to enhance the existing Breast Surgery Service over the next two years, as resources permit, to include sentinel node biopsy.

21. The opening hours of the Family Planning Service have been adapted to suit female service users.

22. The End of Life Strategy, currently in the very early stages of preparation, will specifically include consideration of the disproportionate burden of End of Life care which falls on women, and how the adverse effects of that burden can be minimised or eliminated.

Article 13

23. The Isle of Man Government (now through the Department of Social Care) continues to provide a full range of social benefits; including Family Income Support, Child Benefit and Maternity Allowance. Further information about the range of benefits available and current benefit rates can be found at: http://www.gov.im/socialcare/security/

Article 14

24. No new information to report. This article does not have particular relevance for the Isle of Man, as a small jurisdiction with modern infrastructure covering the Island.

Article 15

25. No new information to report. Women and men have full equality before the law in the Isle of Man.

Article 16

26. The legislative framework in this area is unchanged from the previous report.

27. The Department of Health was the lead agency for the 2010 Domestic Abuse Strategy, a multi-disciplinary strategy which is currently undergoing ratification by the contributing agencies.

28. Assaults occurring within a domestic setting are now treated as a priority by the Isle of Man Constabulary and significant changes have been made to the overall approach of the Police Force. The numbers of these crimes recorded by the Police in the last four years are as shown in the table below.

Appendix

Document provided to the Committee with this Report

The Immigration (Isle of Man) Order 2008 (SI 2008/680)