The new coalition government introduced a raft of new legislation in yesterday’s Queen’s Speech which promises to bring radical change to the country. Whilst the full details of the new legislation have not yet been published, below are some early thoughts on what it could mean for race equality.

Given the unequal attainment levels of different ethnic groups, the pupil premium included in the Education and Children’s Bill may have a positive impact on those BME children in lower attaining groups. However clarification will be needed on how the pupil premium will be allocated – will, for example, being a child from an ethnic group with the lowest attainment levels (such as Gypsy, Roma and Traveller groups, or Black Caribbean Children) result in receiving pupil premium funding? In addition, it is important that the amount allocated through the premium is enough as to act as a sufficient incentive for schools to accept them as pupils.

The slimming down of the curriculum could be a concern if citizenship classes and other multi-cultural initiatives are scrapped – however it is not yet clear whether this will be the case.

The emphasis on increasing patient choice in the Health Bill may impact some BME people differently from other groups. Previous research by Runnymede on school choice found that BME parents find it difficult to exercise choice, and therefore downgrade their options prior to selecting schools. Further research would be needed to consider whether this would be the case in heath, but it is worth considering the school choice example.

Legislation to roll back some of the powers of the DNA database will be welcomed by many in the race equality sector given the disproportionate numbers of innocent black men represented. The high profile Labour MP Keith Vaz, who drew attention to the problems of the database when chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee before the election, welcomed the move in a House of Commons debate following the speech.

Finally, it is worth considering how the government’s Decentralisation and Localism Bill will impact on Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. The abolishment of Regional Spatial Strategies is likely to have an impact on site provision and the devolution of power to local residents through local referendums could potentially result in hostile measures being introduced against the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.