Written Statement: Achieving an equitable Wales: The National Equality Objectives 2024-28

Under the Equality Act 2010 (Statutory Duties) (Wales) Regulations 2011, the Welsh Government must review its National Equality Objectives every four years (from 1 April 2012). 

Our new National Equality Objectives 2024-28 are published today. They will be followed by our Strategic Equality Plan, which will set out how we will implement the objectives. 

Since July 2023, the Welsh Government has engaged with equality stakeholders and the public through a 12-week consultation and two workshop events. This engagement enabled us to listen to and learn from people’s lived experiences and feedback. We have taken this all into account when developing the national equality objectives. 

The National Equality Objectives are:

• National Equality Objective 1: We will create a Wales where everyone has opportunities to prosper in line with our organisational goal to reduce poverty.
• National Equality Objective 2: We will create a Wales where everyone can be aware of their human rights, and where those rights are protected, promoted, and underpin all public policy.
• National Equality Objective 3: We will create a Wales where everyone can be aware of and has equitable access to high quality public services.
• National Equality Objective 4: We will create a Wales free from discrimination, victimisation, harassment, abuse, hate crime and/or bullying against all people.
• National Equality Objective 5: We will create a Wales where everyone from the full diversity of backgrounds can participate in public life, have their voices heard and see themselves reflected in leadership positions.
• National Equality Objective 6: We will create a Wales with fair and equal opportunities to gain employment and for fair and equal treatment in the workplace, including fair pay and conditions.
• National Equality Objective 7: We will create an environmentally sustainable Wales with the capacity to both ensure our journey to net zero is fair and to respond to the inequitable impacts of climate change.

The National Equality Objectives 2024-28 are broad and cross-governmental. They provide the foundation for our work to eliminate inequality, promote equality, and foster good relations between people. They reflect our focus on creating a Wales which will provide fair access to services for all, and deliver fairer outcomes for our diverse people and communities across Wales. The objectives are linked to the actions set out in individual equality plans, such as the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan and the LGBTQ+ Action Plan, which were developed in partnership with stakeholders, who also work with us to deliver on the actions they contain. They provide a strong framework for the equality action plans, helping to reduce complexity and further embedding equality into our policy making.

The active voices of those with lived experience of facing discrimination and inequalities have been central to the development of this work. We look forward to continuing to work closely with partner organisations, with communities and people across Wales towards achieving our national equality objectives.