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Documents relating to the Childrens Rights and Equality Impact Assessments for the Transgender Action Plan

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Dear Welsh Government,
This request follows up FOI 13341 submitted by E Williams, under which you were unable to find copies of the draft or final Equalities Impact Assessment in your electronic systems. You apparently did not search hard-copy files for written notes or typescripts, which do come under the FoI legislation.

Ministerial advice MA - P/LG/1253/15 (8 Dec. 2015) says an Equalities Impact Assessment and Children’s Rights Impact had been drafted, would be updated and published. No points from these are reported in the MA. Yet it includes a signed statement from the Deputy Director “I have quality assured this advice”.

Please disclose documentary evidence that the signatory had access to and viewed the draft EqIA and CRIA; also that the Minister had access likewise, either in Dec. 2015 or later when the finalised Transgender Action Plan was approved.

As E Williams (FOI 13341) pointed out on 9 Sep. your EqIA guidance says:
"It is a crucial responsibility to consult widely on the draft report” and “It is important to ensure that all protected characteristic groups are represented in the consultation.”
The consultation report talks only of trans-groups involved in early consultation (prior to the public consultation of 22 June to 11 September 2015) and lists 33 organisations which evidently don’t cover all protected characteristic groups. Officials would have therefore involved other external/internal groups to cover all protected characteristic groups on the Dec. 2015 draft. Your answer of 7 October 2019 omits to address this. While you do not retain internal e-mails, please disclose documents that you do hold on the post-2015 consultation:
a) all external emails and documents relating to this post-2015 consultation, and
b) any typed or handwritten notes in files of the “Fairer Futures” officials relating to it
c) any written notes and final report showing this consultation covered all protected characteristic groups
d) documents relating to the Children’s Rights Impact assessment and consultation on it

Yours faithfully,

Anne Greagsby

Welsh Government

2 Attachments

Please see attached a response to your FOI request.

 

 

Y Gangen Cydraddoldeb / Equality Branch

Yr Is-Adran Gymunedau / Communities Division

Y Grwp Addysg a Gwasanaethau Cyhoeddus / Education and Public Services
Group
Llywodraeth Cymru / Welsh Government
Merthyr Tudful / Merthyr Tydfil

CF48 1UZ

Ffôn / Tel:  (0300) 025 7750

Ebost / Email: [1]EqualityBranch@gov.wales

[2]cid:image001.jpg@01D4A67D.C246CE10

Hapus i gyfathrebu’n Saesneg neu yn y Gymraeg/Happy to communicate in
English or Welsh

 

Sganiwyd y neges hon am bob feirws hysbys wrth iddi adael Llywodraeth
Cymru. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn cymryd o ddifrif yr angen i ddiogelu eich
data. Os cysylltwch â Llywodraeth Cymru, mae ein [3]hysbysiad preifatrwydd
yn esbonio sut rydym yn defnyddio eich gwybodaeth a sut rydym yn diogelu
eich preifatrwydd. Rydym yn croesawu gohebiaeth yn Gymraeg. Byddwn yn
anfon ateb yn Gymraeg i ohebiaeth a dderbynnir yn Gymraeg ac ni fydd
gohebu yn Gymraeg yn arwain at oedi. On leaving the Welsh Government this
email was scanned for all known viruses. The Welsh Government takes the
protection of your data seriously. If you contact the Welsh Government
then our [4]Privacy Notice explains how we use your information and the
ways in which we protect your privacy. We welcome receiving correspondence
in Welsh. Any correspondence received in Welsh will be answered in Welsh
and corresponding in Welsh will not lead to a delay in responding.

References

Visible links
1. mailto:EqualityBranch@gov.wales
3. file:///tmp/”https:/gov.wales/about/welsh-government-privacy-notice/?lang=cy”
4. https://gov.wales/about/welsh-government...

Dear Welsh Government,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Welsh Government's handling of my FOI request 'Documents relating to the Childrens Rights and Equality Impact Assessments for the Transgender Action Plan'.

It is not credible that the officials have been unable to find any documents re. the Childrens Rights and Equality Impact Assessment, which they told the Minister in MA - P/LG/1253/15 (8 Dec. 2015) then existed in draft. They claim not to find anything on the main electronic system, but have not looked in PCs (where some record of the deletion/header could be found) or in paper files of the responsible officials or section
1. Ministerial advice MA - P/LG/1253/15 (8 Dec. 2015) It is not credible that the responsible official (Deputy Director) signs that “I have quality assured this advice” for sending to the Minister without an audit trail including a record of what documents were covered. Please search further in the paper files from Nov-Dec.2015. Please say if the then Deputy Director has been asked to locate paper records.
I asked for documentary evidence that the responsible officer and the Minister had access to the EqIA and CRIA when the finalised Transgender Action Plan was approved in mid 2016. You have failed to answer. You could have supplied documents including the finalised Plan with any annotations from that time, which would constitute the documentary evidence I requested.

2. The response says I asked for "All documents held by the Welsh Government regarding the post-2015 consultation on the Transgender Action Plan".
I in fact included
a) all external emails and documents relating to this post-2015 consultation, and
b) any typed or handwritten notes in files of the “Fairer Futures” officials relating to it
c) any written notes and final report showing this consultation covered all protected characteristic groups.
To treat my request as covering only the WG main electronic records is at the best unhelpful, if not a cover-up, so in breach of the FoI legislation.
You fail to supply any documents, saying there were no consultations post-2015. That’s not credible.

There had to be internal discussions chasing up the finalised EqIA and CRIA, assessing any changes needed and then approving the final Plan. You would then know who was carrying out the CRIA and find the relevant paper files. Officials would have to check that all protected characteristic groups had been consulted. Though I specifically mention files of the “Fairer Futures” officials, you did not search in them.
If the “Fairer Futures” or other officials had conducted the EqIA and/or the CRIA, they would have followed the good practice in the cited EIA Practice Hub that says: “There should be more than one author” and “Create a timeline in which to conduct the EIA and record progress throughout the assessment.” Have you looked for that timeline and record?

Your Rae Cornish, Head of Gender Equality Review, told E Williams that the Equality Impact Assessment had been “unfortunately” deleted from the electronic system. Would you say the same about the CRIA ? Also what steps you have taken to recover it:
# as it’s difficult to remove all traces of a document from PCs, you would be able to find out when it was deleted and header information from the time
# the WG keeps back-up discs, so you would be able to search those from Dec.2015 to mid-2016

I would not put you to so much trouble, except that the Transgender Plan is claimed to be a living document so would see it as essential to retain the supporting EqIA and CRIA. I cannot see from your reply that you have tried hard enough to remedy this embarrassing deficiency in record keeping.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/d...

Yours faithfully,

Anne Greagsby

Welsh Government

1 Attachment

 

Please see attached response to your correspondence.

Sganiwyd y neges hon am bob feirws hysbys wrth iddi adael Llywodraeth
Cymru. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn cymryd o ddifrif yr angen i ddiogelu eich
data. Os cysylltwch â Llywodraeth Cymru, mae ein [1]hysbysiad preifatrwydd
yn esbonio sut rydym yn defnyddio eich gwybodaeth a sut rydym yn diogelu
eich preifatrwydd. Rydym yn croesawu gohebiaeth yn Gymraeg. Byddwn yn
anfon ateb yn Gymraeg i ohebiaeth a dderbynnir yn Gymraeg ac ni fydd
gohebu yn Gymraeg yn arwain at oedi. On leaving the Welsh Government this
email was scanned for all known viruses. The Welsh Government takes the
protection of your data seriously. If you contact the Welsh Government
then our [2]Privacy Notice explains how we use your information and the
ways in which we protect your privacy. We welcome receiving correspondence
in Welsh. Any correspondence received in Welsh will be answered in Welsh
and corresponding in Welsh will not lead to a delay in responding.

References

Visible links
1. file:///tmp/”https:/gov.wales/about/welsh-government-privacy-notice/?lang=cy”
2. https://gov.wales/about/welsh-government...

Welsh Government

1 Attachment

Dear Anne Greagsby,

 

Please see attached a response letter in relation to your recent Freedom
of Information request.

 

Kind Regards,

 

The Equality Branch

 

 

 

Sganiwyd y neges hon am bob feirws hysbys wrth iddi adael Llywodraeth
Cymru. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn cymryd o ddifrif yr angen i ddiogelu eich
data. Os cysylltwch â Llywodraeth Cymru, mae ein [1]hysbysiad preifatrwydd
yn esbonio sut rydym yn defnyddio eich gwybodaeth a sut rydym yn diogelu
eich preifatrwydd. Rydym yn croesawu gohebiaeth yn Gymraeg. Byddwn yn
anfon ateb yn Gymraeg i ohebiaeth a dderbynnir yn Gymraeg ac ni fydd
gohebu yn Gymraeg yn arwain at oedi. On leaving the Welsh Government this
email was scanned for all known viruses. The Welsh Government takes the
protection of your data seriously. If you contact the Welsh Government
then our [2]Privacy Notice explains how we use your information and the
ways in which we protect your privacy. We welcome receiving correspondence
in Welsh. Any correspondence received in Welsh will be answered in Welsh
and corresponding in Welsh will not lead to a delay in responding.

References

Visible links
1. file:///tmp/”https:/gov.wales/about/welsh-government-privacy-notice/?lang=cy”
2. https://gov.wales/about/welsh-government...

Welsh Government

1 Attachment

Dear Anne Greagsby,

 

Please see attached a response letter in relation to your recent Freedom
of Information request.

 

Kind Regards,

 

The Equality Branch

 

Sganiwyd y neges hon am bob feirws hysbys wrth iddi adael Llywodraeth
Cymru. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn cymryd o ddifrif yr angen i ddiogelu eich
data. Os cysylltwch â Llywodraeth Cymru, mae ein [1]hysbysiad preifatrwydd
yn esbonio sut rydym yn defnyddio eich gwybodaeth a sut rydym yn diogelu
eich preifatrwydd. Rydym yn croesawu gohebiaeth yn Gymraeg. Byddwn yn
anfon ateb yn Gymraeg i ohebiaeth a dderbynnir yn Gymraeg ac ni fydd
gohebu yn Gymraeg yn arwain at oedi. On leaving the Welsh Government this
email was scanned for all known viruses. The Welsh Government takes the
protection of your data seriously. If you contact the Welsh Government
then our [2]Privacy Notice explains how we use your information and the
ways in which we protect your privacy. We welcome receiving correspondence
in Welsh. Any correspondence received in Welsh will be answered in Welsh
and corresponding in Welsh will not lead to a delay in responding.

References

Visible links
1. file:///tmp/”https:/gov.wales/about/welsh-government-privacy-notice/?lang=cy”
2. https://gov.wales/about/welsh-government...

We don't know whether the most recent response to this request contains information or not – if you are Anne Greagsby please sign in and let everyone know.