Young, disabled and ethnic minority Scots face significantly more barriers to success than others according to a new report
Scottish life expectancy is still the lowest in Britain and young, disabled and ethnic minority Scots are experiencing growing inequality.
The results of a five-year study from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has found that while some people’s rights are more respected today than five years ago, for others life has become worse.
Disabled Scots, for example, earn £1.20 an hour less than their non-disabled colleagues, and only 43% have a job at all, compared to 80% of the rest of the population.
Young people and ethnic minorities have been particularly badly-hit over the last five years, with life on many fronts getting worse
Meanwhile standards of housing have improved and homelessness has fallen in the last five years but more children are growing up in poverty.
The commission examined a range of different areas of British society over a five-year period. The resulting Is Britain Fairer report finds that young people suffered the greatest drop in income and employment of any group, and now face greater barriers to achieving economic independence than they did five years ago.
Alastair Pringle, EHRC Scotland director said: “This report shows that progress towards equality has been made for some people in certain areas of life. However, many people are being left behind.
“Young people and ethnic minorities have been particularly badly-hit over the last five years, with life on many fronts getting worse. The gateway to opportunity remains harder to pass through for some groups, such as disabled people and people from poorer backgrounds and from the gypsy traveller community.”
The report highlights continuing inequalities in health, housing conditions and living standards across the UK.
Other areas requiring significant improvement are eliminating violence, harassment and abuse in the community.
It found, for example, that 28% of adults in Scotland feel unsafe being alone at home at night or walking alone. The number of rapes or attempted rapes and domestic violence incidents recorded by police also increased.
The full Scottish findings of the Is Britain Fairer study will be released in January 2016.
