Publications and resources
Below you’ll find a comprehensive library of the Equality Coalition’s reports, submissions and other publications. These documents are produced in collaboration with our members.
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Equality Coalition Oral Evidence Committee for Communities
14 May, 2026
Equality Coalition Co-Convenors gave oral evidence to the Committee for Communities on 14 May alongside the Anti-Poverty Strategy Group and the Northern Ireland Anti-Poverty Network. The delegation spoke about the Department for Communities' consultation report on the draft Anti-Poverty Strategy, and reaffirmed the need for a comprehensive, ambitious Anti-Poverty Strategy inclusive of targets and indicators and based on objective need....
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Written Evidence to the Justice Committee on the Criminal Justice (Sentencing etc) Bill
1 May, 2026
The Equality Coalition has responded to the Justice Committee’s call for evidence on the Criminal Justice (Sentencing etc.) Bill. This evidence advocates for the amendment of Part 6 of the Sentencing Bill to include a misogyny aggravator based on the Scottish model. The addition of a misogyny aggravator is needed to address the acute levels of misogynistic violence against women...
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New Report: ‘The Enforcement of Statutory Duties’
22 April, 2026
This conference report is from our ‘The Enforcement of Statutory Duties’ event, co-hosted with Ulster University’s Transitional Justice Institute (TJI) and held on Thursday, 23rd January 2025 at Ulster University, Belfast campus. The event brought together campaigners, legal practitioners, academics and community leaders to reflect on the effectiveness of equality and related statutory duties in Northern Ireland. The discussions focused...
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Submission to the Assembly and Executive Review Committee’s Review of Assembly and Executive Reform
19 November, 2025
The Equality Coalition has responded to the Assembly and Executive Review Committee’s (AERC) Review into Assembly and Executive Reform. Our submission includes several key asks: The AERC should advocate for the repeal of the St Andrews veto and its replacement with the NI Bill of Rights. The Petition of Concern should be further reformed to introduce the adjudicatory role of...
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Submission by the Equality Coalition to the draft Programme for Government Consultation
30 October, 2025
The Equality Coalition has submitted our response to the draft Programme for Government consultation. Our response focuses on: Programme for Government legal framework The previous draft PfG in the New Decade New Approach deal The 2024 PfG consultation Equality Coalition members ‘asks’ for areas in the PfG
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‘Inciting a Pogrom?’ Social Media and the Racist Disorder in Ballymena
8 September, 2025
This report builds on the Mapping Far Right Activity Online in Northern Ireland Project Report (May 2025), which examined case studies of far-right activity, from racist housing intimidation in South Belfast (2023) to the racist and Islamophobic violence in Belfast on 3 August 2024. That report analysed social media narratives, political messaging, and responses to these incidents, and was launched...
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‘Screened Out Without Mitigation’ Returning Equality in Northern Ireland to the Margins
27 June, 2025
This report examines how the statutory equality duties under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, as well as the use of the ‘call-in’ mechanism, are operating within Northern Ireland’s 11 local councils. Authored by independent researcher Dr Robbie McVeigh and commissioned by the Equality Coalition, the report provides background on the legacy of sectarian discrimination in local government,...
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Mapping Far Right Activity Online in Northern Ireland Project Report
2 May, 2025
This report explores the rise of far-right discourse in Northern Ireland on social media has become a key platform for spreading racist stereotypes, misinformation, and hate targeting migrants and minority ethnic communities. Drawing on detailed case studies, it outlines how such narratives—often rooted in discredited ideas like the “great replacement theory”—fuel fear, division, and in some cases, real-world violence and...
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Seminar Report: How could minority and women’s rights be protected in a united Ireland?
15 May, 2024
On 15th November 2023, the Equality Coalition and the Transitional Justice Institute, with support from the LSE Gender, Justice and Security Hub, hosted a seminar which discussed how the rights of minorities and women could be protected in a United Ireland. The seminar consisted of two panels. Panel one covered issues around post-unification cross-border constitutionalism, unionist rights in a united...
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Seminar Report: Could rights-based safeguards make Stormont functional?
15 May, 2024
On 13th October 2023, the Equality Coalition and the Transitional Justice Institute, with support from the LSE Gender, Justice and Security Hub, hosted a seminar which explored whether rights-based safeguards could make Stormont functional. The seminar consisted of two panels. Panel one covered a range of issues including a Bill of Rights, Stormont vetoes, and judicial interventions. Panel two covered...
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Equality Coalition Committee for Communities Oral Evidence
25 April, 2024
On 25 April, the Equality Coalition gave evidence to the Northern Ireland Assembly Committee for Communities on the Anti-Poverty Strategy. Daniel Holder (CAJ), John-Patrick Clayton (UNISON), Becca Bor (Northern Ireland Anti-Poverty Network) and Trása Canavan (Barnardo’s) represented the Coalition. They spoke about the duty to adopt an Anti-Poverty Strategy, judicial reviews of the Northern Ireland Executive and the 2020-2022 Mandate...
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Progressing an anti-poverty strategy for Northern Ireland – Seminar report
1 January, 2024
On 28 June 2023, the Equality Coalition, Barnardo’s NI, and the Northern Ireland Anti-Poverty Network (NIAPN) held a joint seminar calling for the development of an anti-poverty strategy to be a day one priority for the next NI Executive. ‘Progressing an anti-poverty strategy for Northern Ireland’ took place at Stormont and was sponsored by MLAs from five political parties. Northern...
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Progressing an anti-poverty strategy for Northern Ireland – Briefing note
1 June, 2023
The Equality Coalition, Barnardo’s NI, and the Northern Ireland Anti-Poverty Network (NIAPN) have produced a joint briefing note calling for the development of an anti-poverty strategy to be a day one priority for the next NI Executive. The three organisations launched the briefing at a seminar held in Stormont on Wednesday 28 June 2023. Northern Ireland has already been waiting for an...
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Policy Asks 2022
1 January, 2022
The Equality Coalition has developed a series of ‘Policy Asks’ for Northern Ireland, which have a particular emphasis on rights and equality. These ‘asks’ are based on a recent mapping exercise examining the status of rights-based commitments from the agreements of the NI peace process.
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Submission in relation to the ECNI draft legal assistance policy
1 September, 2021
The Equality Coalition for NI (ECNI) recently consulted on their new (draft) Policy for the Provision of Legal Advice and Assistance. In response, we produced this submission suggesting a number of changes to the draft document. Our recommendations focus primarily on encouraging ECNI to use their enforcement powers strategically and proactively going forwards.
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Generic submission to draft equality schemes out for consultation in 2021
1 August, 2021
Since the advent of Section 75, the Equality Coalition has engaged extensively with public authorities in relation to their equality schemes. In 2016, when a number of reorganised public authorities were consulting on their schemes, we drafted a generic submission to provide advice to them on best practice. This submission has now been updated for 2021 as a number of public bodies...
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Submission on Programme for Government outcomes and draft budget
1 February, 2021
We have finalised our submission on the Programme for Government (PfG) outcomes and draft budget (including departmental screenings/EQIAs). Given their interlinking nature, this submission responds to a number of different, concurrent consultations at once. Our submission examines the rights and equality implications of current plans, including whether the Section 75 statutory equality duty has been applied adequately throughout the budgetary process. We...
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