{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-employment-equality-sexual-orientation-regulations-2003/regulation-2",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-employment-equality-sexual-orientation-regulations-2003/regulation-2.json",
  "legislation": "ukdsi/2003/0110464540",
  "legislation_title": "The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/draft-employment-equality-sexual-orientation-regulations-2003",
  "path": "regulation/2",
  "kind": "regulation",
  "number": "2",
  "heading": "Interpretation",
  "text": "(1) In these Regulations, “sexual orientation” means a sexual orientation towards—\n(a) persons of the same sex;\n(b) persons of the opposite sex; or\n(c) persons of the same sex and of the opposite sex.\n(2) In these Regulations, references to discrimination are to any discrimination falling within regulation 3 (discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation) or 4 (discrimination by way of victimisation) and related expressions shall be construed accordingly, and references to harassment shall be construed in accordance with regulation 5 (harassment on grounds of sexual orientation).\n(3) In these Regulations—\n“act” includes a deliberate omission;\n“benefits” includes facilities and services;\n“detriment” does not include harassment within the meaning of regulation 5;\nreferences to “employer”, in their application to a person at any time seeking to employ another, include a person who has no employees at that time;\n“employment” means employment under a contract of service or of apprenticeship or a contract personally to do any work, and related expressions shall be construed accordingly;\n“Great Britain” includes such of the territorial waters of the United Kingdom as are adjacent to Great Britain;\n“Minister of the Crown” includes the Treasury and the Defence Council; and\n“school”, in England and Wales, has the meaning given by section 4 of the Education Act 1996, and, in Scotland, has the meaning given by section 135(1) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, and references to a school are to an institution in so far as it is engaged in the provision of education under those sections.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f1",
      "text": "1996 c. 56; section 4 was amended by section 51 of the Education Act 1997 (c. 44) and Schedule 22, Part 3 to the Education Act 2002 (c. 32)."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f2",
      "text": "1980 c. 44."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2003/0110464540/regulation/2",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-30T15:25:09.372639+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}