Equality Bill makes it to the statute books

Posted Thursday 8 April 2010

The Equality Bill last night (6 April) completed the final stage of its passage through Parliament and will now become law which means from autumn employers will no longer be able to ask job applicants about their mental health history prior to interview.

Mind’s Chief Executive, Paul Farmer, said:

“This is a real victory for Mind, and for everyone affected by mental health problems. We have long argued that pre-employment health questionnaires allow for discriminatory practices, and we are delighted they will be a thing of the past come autumn. 

"For too long, employers have been able to covertly ‘weed out’ job applicants with a history of mental distress – regardless of whether or not the applicant is able to do the job.  This practice deterred many people with mental health problems from even applying, and forced many others to lie to potential employers just to get a foot in the door. These new laws will go a long way to ensure that candidates with mental health problems are judged on their ability, not their mental health history.”

Thanks to all our supporters who helped us secure this landmark victory against mental health discrimination.

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