Scotland's Tax Strategy 2024: equality impact assessment

The Scope of the EQIA

As tax affects all people in Scotland, the Tax Strategy will impact all individuals, households and business who are taxpayers across all protected characteristics and groups, and as such all protected characteristics were considered, as well as the PSED needs.

The Tax Advisory Group (TAG) was established and met for the first time in July 2023. TAG provided feedback and advice throughout the development of the Tax Strategy with respect to improvements to the existing tax system, future priorities and evidence and evaluation programmes^[5].

Scottish Government officials gathered evidence and analysis from a review of externally published reports and internal analysis and through the programme of external stakeholder engagement.

During the second phase of stakeholder engagement, stakeholders noted that the Scottish Government should identify and engage with seldom heard voices in the development of tax policy. At this time, the Scottish Government has stated an intention to do this and has initially identified 16- and 17-year-old taxpayers as a group that it will engage with in future tax policy engagement programmes where appropriate.

As a result of both phases of stakeholder feedback, the Scottish Government engaged with 65 different stakeholders, inclusive of think tanks, civic society groups, businesses and advocacy groups. As it pertains to this EQIA, notable groups engaged with include the Equality and Human Rights Budget Advisory Group, Glasgow Disability Alliance, the Poverty and Inequality Commission, and the Scottish Women’s Budget Group.