Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2016 to Question 56128, whether she plans to repeal paragraph 4 of Schedule 22 of the Equality Act 2010 which exempts provisions of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 that relate to religious aspects of the appointment and dismissal of teachers.

There are no plans to repeal paragraph 4 of Schedule 22 of the Equality Act.

As set out in my response to question 56128, we consider that the provisions in sections 60(4) and 60(5) of the School Standards and Framework Act comply with the EU Employment Equality Directive Article 4(2) and as such see no requirement to make any changes to the Equality Act in this respect.