Legislation and Policy Context

Legislation

Fairer Scotland Duty

Part 1 of the Equality Act 2010 ( Legislation.gov.uk (2010) Equality Act 2010. ) , the ‘Fairer Scotland Duty’, places a legal responsibility on the relevant authorities to actively consider how they can reduce inequalities of outcome caused by socio-economic disadvantage. The Scottish Government, when making decisions of a strategic nature about how to exercise its functions, must have due regard to the desirability of exercising them in a way that is designed to reduce the inequalities of outcome which result from socio-economic disadvantage. The ‘Fairer Scotland Duty’ differs from the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) under Section 149 of the Equality Act which considers only reducing inequalities of opportunity.

The Fairer Scotland Duty - Guidance for Public Bodies ( Scottish Government (2022) Fairer Scotland Duty: guidance for public bodies. ) identifies a need to consider both ‘communities of place’ and ‘communities of interest’ in terms of people who share an experience and are particularly impacted by socio-economic disadvantage. Key factors through which socio-economic disadvantage can be considered include:

  • low/no wealth
  • low income
  • area deprivation
  • socio-economic background
  • material deprivation.

The inequalities of outcome that people can face because of socio-economic disadvantage include:

  • poorer skills and attainment
  • lower health life expectancy
  • lower quality, less secure and lower paid work
  • greater chance of being a victim of crime
  • less chance of being treated with dignity and respect.

National Policy Context

The section below provides an overview of the most relevant national policies to the A96 Corridor Review. A detailed policy context is provided in the SEqIA Scoping Report ( Transport Scotland (2022) A96 Corridor Review Social and Equality Impact Assessment Scoping Report (unpublished)).

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4)

NPF4 is a long-term plan providing the vision and spatial strategy for Scotland to 2045 and provides guidance to where development and infrastructure should be planned ( Scottish Government (2022) National Planning Framework 4: revised draft ) .

NPF4 identifies six overarching principles to support the delivery of future places. These are:

  • just transition
  • conserving and recycling assets
  • local living
  • compact urban growth
  • rebalanced development
  • rural revitalisation.

Applying these spatial principles will support the delivery of:

  • Sustainable places where we reduce emissions, restore and better connect biodiversity
  • Liveable places where we can all live better, healthier lives
  • Productive places where we have a greener, fairer and more inclusive wellbeing economy.

National Transport Strategy 2 (NTS2)

NTS2 ( Transport Scotland (2020) National Transport Strategy 2 ) outlines Scotland’s transport vision for the next 20 years through the following four priorities:

  • reduce inequalities
  • taking climate action
  • delivering inclusive economic growth
  • improving health and wellbeing

The following transport challenges are identified through NTS2:

  • Transport can represent significant cost in terms of accessing essential services and plays a crucial part in accessing employment and preventing social isolation.
  • Productivity, labour markets, fair work and skilled workforce, and trade and connectivity: an efficient transport system, that is affordable, fair and inclusive for employers and the workforce will help address some of these challenges.
  • Health and active travel: increasing the number of people walking and cycling, especially for short journeys, can have a big impact on individual health and wellbeing.

Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR)

STPR ( Transport Scotland (2008) Strategic Transport Projects Review ) outlines the Scottish Government’s 29 transport investment priorities over the period to 2032 (Transport Scotland, 2008).

The review recognises the central role of transport; “An efficient transport system is one of the key enablers for enhancing productivity and delivering faster, more sustainable economic growth”.

The following objectives were identified for the corridor between Inverness and Aberdeen specifically:

  • “To improve connectivity, particularly by public transport between Inverness city centre and the growth area to the east including Inverness Airport
  • To improve journey time and increase opportunities to travel, particularly by public transport, between Aberdeen and Inverness
  • To reduce the accident rate and severity rate to current national average”.

Strategic Transport Projects Review 2 (STPR2)

The Second Strategic Transport Projects Review ( Transport Scotland (2022) Strategic Transport Projects Review 2. ) informs transport investment in Scotland and helps to deliver the visions, priorities and outcomes set out in the NTS2 (Transport Scotland, 2022).

STPR2 has five key objectives that it aims to address:

  • taking climate action
  • addressing inequalities and accessibility
  • improving health and wellbeing
  • supporting sustainable economic growth
  • increasing safety and resilience.

Over a 20-year period (2022-2042), the STPR2 aims to:

  • enhance accessibility across Scotland for residents, visitors and businesses
  • create better connectivity with sustainable, smart and cleaner transport options
  • highlight the vital contribution that transport investment can play in enabling and sustaining Scotland’s economic growth.