Women’s Policy Group NI Condemns Department for Communities’ Budget EQIA Process and Calls for Urgent Reform
7 August 2025 – The Women’s Policy Group Northern Ireland (WPG NI) has issued a comprehensive and critical response to the Department for Communities’ Draft Budget Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) for 2025–26, expressing deep concern over the Department’s failure to adequately assess and mitigate the disproportionate impacts of budget decisions on women and other protected groups.
The WPG NI, a coalition of feminist policy experts and practitioners, has highlighted systemic flaws in the EQIA process, including the exclusion of vital data sources, lack of intersectional analysis, and failure to comply with Equality Commission guidance. The group warns that the Department’s approach risks breaching statutory duties under Section 75 and Section 28E of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.
Key concerns raised in the response include:
Inadequate Data Use: The Department omitted critical reports and statistics, including those it commissioned, undermining the credibility of its analysis.
Gendered Impacts Ignored: Disproportionate effects on women in areas such as benefit delivery, discretionary support, homelessness, and employment support were not properly acknowledged.
Failure to Mitigate: The Department did not propose meaningful actions to reduce adverse impacts, contrary to EQIA best practices.
Call for Gender Budgeting: WPG NI urges the Department to embed gender budgeting throughout the budget cycle to ensure equitable outcomes.
The WPG NI also calls for a meeting with Departmental officials to support the development of future EQIAs and budget processes that meet the expected standards of transparency, accountability, and equality.
The full response includes endorsements from the Women’s Regional Consortium, Housing Rights, UNISON, and the NI Women’s Budget Group, and draws on extensive evidence from previous consultations and international human rights frameworks.
For further information, please contact:
Elaine Crory – elaine.crory@wrda.net
Meghan Hoyt – meghan.hoyt@wrda.net
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