Joint Committee on the Draft Disability Discrimination Bill Written Evidence


Memorandum from groups representing people with a learning disability (DDB 23)

1.  SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

    —  We agree with the Disability Rights Commission's idea that the point at which discrimination occurs (the trigger) should be set at "substantial disadvantage" throughout the Disability Discrimination Act and the new Disability Discrimination Bill.

    —  The draft Codes of Practice should be published as soon as possible.

    —  The Government should set aside money to tell people about the Bill.

    —  We want this new law to happen as soon as possible so that the Disability Rights Commission is able to decide exactly how things will work before the Commission for Human Rights and Equality takes over.

    —  All transport services should be included in Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act immediately.

    —  Accessible audio-visual information to customers onboard vehicles should be made a priority by changing Part 5 of the Disability Discrimination Act.

    —  We would like to see all buses and trains made fully accessible by 2017.

    —  Any definition of an "auxiliary aid" should include accessible tenancy agreements and other signage.

    —  Landlords should not be allowed to withhold consent unreasonably from a tenant who wants to make changes to the physical features of their home.

    —  The Government should write a list of public authorities. This should include schools, further education and higher education institutions, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and general examination bodies. It should also say what a public authority is so that other bodies which the Government does not put in the list, but which match the description of a public body, would also be included under the new equality duties.

    —  The Government should say more clearly what the disability equality duties will mean for each public body, particularly in relation to education and employment.

    —  Volunteers should be covered under the Disability Discrimination Act powers.

    —  A person should not have to say they have a disability when they fill out a job application. An employer should only be allowed to ask if someone has a disability before a job is offered if it is absolutely necessary.

    —  There should be accessible tribunals rather than courts to enforce Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act because courts are often too expensive and scary for people with a learning disability to use.

2.  INTRODUCTION

  The following organisations representing people with a learning disability have written this to say how we feel about the draft Disability Discrimination Bill:

    —  British Institute of Learning Disabilities (Bild).

    —  Home Farm Trust.

    —  Leonard Cheshire.

    —  Mencap.

    —  National Autistic Society.

    —  Popan.

    —  Respond.

    —  Sense.

    —  Turning Point.

    —  Voice UK.

3.  GENERAL COMMENTS

  Many of the people who will help write the final Bill do not understand the needs of people with a learning disability very well. Accessibility is not just about being physically able to get in and out of a building or vehicle.

  Some of our comments below reflect our concerns that things that are important to people with a learning disability will not be properly considered in this Bill even though there are 1.2 million people with a learning disability in England alone. In total, around 15% of the UK population of disabled people have a learning disability.

  We had to wait nearly two months after the publication of the draft Bill for an accessible version. This does not give us confidence that the Government is interested in what people with a learning disability have to say. We hope the Joint Committee is willing to listen to us.

  We welcome the principles behind the draft Bill. The measures will help improve equality and respect for people with a learning disability and reduce discrimination but only if the point at which discrimination occurs (the trigger) is not set too high.

  How far the Bill will improve the lives of people with a learning disability will depend largely on its detail rather than its principles. In some areas of the Bill—particularly transport—the Government has not gone far enough and in other areas, our concerns are not addressed at all.

  People with a learning disability want equality, opportunity and respect. We recognise that this Bill cannot deliver all this by itself but we will not get another chance for a Disability Bill for quite some time. So we feel the Government should do more in this Bill to improve things.

  We also think that changing people's attitudes is as important as new laws and the Government must do something about this too.

Recommendations

    —  We welcome the Disability Rights Commission's idea that the point at which discrimination occurs (the trigger) should be set at "substantial disadvantage" throughout the Disability Discrimination Act and the new Disability Discrimination Bill. This would mean that a person with a disability would be discriminated against if they were put at a substantial disadvantage when they tried to use a service. At the moment we think the trigger is unfair because people would have to prove they had found it "impossible or unreasonably difficult" to use a service which is much harder.

    —  The draft Codes of Practice should be published as soon as possible.

    —  We want this new law to happen as soon as possible so that the Disability Rights Commission is able to decide exactly how things will work before the Commission for Human Rights and Equality takes over.

    —  The Government should set aside money to tell people about the Bill.

Provisions of the Draft Bill

4.  TRANSPORT—CLAUSE 3

  Transport is the thing that people with a learning disability are most worried about in this Bill.

  We feel the draft Bill does not go far enough in making sure that people who provide public transport do not discriminate against people with a learning disability.

  This is also a very difficult area of law to understand. It should be easy. The aim of legislation should be for disabled people to have the same rights to access public transport as everyone else. Instead we have a Disability Discrimination Act which is confusing and a draft Bill which will make things even more difficult to understand.

  Access to public transport is very important to everyone. It determines whether we are able to hold down a job, see our friends and family, shop, or take part in leisure activities. For disabled people in particular, it represents the difference between social inclusion and exclusion.

  We feel the main reasons why little has been done to make transport easier for people with a learning disability to use are:

    —  a poor understanding amongst decision makers about what "accessible transport" means.

    —  because transport providers haven't really thought about the needs of disabled people or because they see meeting their needs as too expensive.

  In 2003, Mencap did a survey of its members to find out what difficulties people with a learning disability had when using public transport. The National Autistic Society did a study as well. Both organisations agreed that what matters most to people with a learning disability are:

    —  signs and travel information that can be easily understood. Timetables, for example, are very difficult to understand.

    —  audio and visual announcements to say where the bus or train will be stopping next and if there has been any change to the route.

    —  proper disability awareness training for transport staff.

  From 1 October 2004, under the current Disability Discrimination Act, transport providers may have to change places like stations and airports—including signs and travel information—but only if it makes it "impossible or unreasonably difficult" for someone with a disability to use them.

  The draft Disability Discrimination Bill would see transport services included in Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act for the first time. However, the physical features of vehicles would still be dealt with under Part 5 of the present law.

  The Government has said that putting transport services under Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act is likely to mean that people like bus and taxi drivers would need to have proper disability awareness training. This would be good for all passengers, not just those passengers who have a disability.

  Everyone needs help sometimes and disability awareness training is really about making sure transport staff understand how to help better. As such, it would save the transport companies money in other types of training, like customer care training, and in dealing with complaints.

  Many transport providers say they already have disability awareness training. But our surveys showed people with a learning disability are still discriminated against all the time. Learning disability is often not understood and drivers sometimes wrongly think that someone with a learning disability is being anti-social. Many people may have difficulty speaking or working out the right money to pay for their fare and this can lead to drivers and passengers being rude to them, especially when they try and take the bus.

  Transport providers should have to develop proper disability awareness training which includes training on the specific needs of people with a learning disability. We know we would need to help with this training and would be happy to do so.

  The Government has not said yet what else transport providers are likely to have to do to meet the new law. Nor has the DRC which will say how the law should be explained through the Codes of Practice. We would like this to happen as soon as possible.

  However, given that the physical features of vehicles will remain under Part 5 of the Disability Discrimination Act, we do not think putting transport services under Part 3 of the DDA will place too much burden on transport providers and it should be done immediately for all of them.

  If the Government decides that the Part 3 law should apply to different types of public transport at different times, then it should say exactly when this will happen for each type of transport. We are concerned that some transport providers may not have to do what the new law says for many years unless the Government says now what it wants to do. But we would stress that proper disability awareness training for all transport providers should be happening now.

  Under the draft Bill, the physical features of transport vehicles would remain under Part 5 of the DDA and many transport providers would still not need to put in new audio-visual information systems for their vehicles for many years. Buses, for example, would still not have to say onboard where the bus was going or what the next stop was, even though this is when people with a learning disability most need this information. We think this is wrong.

  Announcements can already be made on most trains but drivers often do not bother or their announcement isn't loud enough to be heard. It should not be up to the driver whether or not they say where the train is going and where it is going to stop next. This shows a lack of management will to help disabled people. The Disability Rights Commission should say that transport providers that already have audio-visual information facilities in their vehicles must use them. Furthermore, these facilities should be in all bus services and other forms of public transport as quickly as possible.

  This could be done by changing Part 5 of the Disability Discrimination Act to prioritise accessible audio-visual information in transport refurbishment programmes.

  We would like to see all buses and trains made fully accessible by 2017 with suitable targets set before this date to ensure that transport providers do not wait until the last minute to make the changes needed.

  We do not think voluntary codes will work for certain transport providers as they do not have a very good record in making travelling easier for disabled people voluntarily.

  For example, on 9 June 2003, EasyJet refused to allow 13 students with a learning disability from Pengwern College, Rhuddlan, North Wales, to board a plane to fly them back from an international soccer tournament in Geneva. EasyJet said they could only fly if they had one carer for every two disabled people. The team had five carers with them. EasyJet eventually allowed them on to the plane after other passengers said they would act as carers but the team was still forced to wait to board the plane until everyone else had got on.

  There have, of course, been other recent well-documented incidents of discrimination against disabled people involving airlines. All these changes will mean nothing if the trigger for when discrimination occurs is set too high. We are worried that a court may rule that a person with a learning disability could be escorted by a carer when they use public transport so transport providers would not need to make things accessible. This would not only double the cost of travelling for someone with a learning disability but would strip them of their independence when making decisions about their daily lives.

Recommendations

    —  All transport services should be included in Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act immediately.

    —  The draft Codes of Practice, setting out exactly what this would mean in practice for transport providers, should be published as soon as possible.

    —  Accessible audio-visual information to customers onboard vehicles should be made a priority by changing Part 5 of the Disability Discrimination Act.

    —  We would like to see all buses and trains made fully accessible by 2017.

    —  The trigger for when discrimination occurs should be lowered to "substantial disadvantage".

5.  FUNCTIONS OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES—CLAUSE 4

  The draft Bill says there must be a "very much less favourable" outcome. We are concerned that this trigger is likely to be too high.

Recommendation

    —  The trigger for when discrimination occurs should be lowered to "substantial disadvantage".

6.  PRIVATE CLUBS—CLAUSE 5

  We welcome this idea but it is the regulations which will say how important this change is for disabled people. We are concerned that the Government wants to set the trigger at the same level as current Part 3 triggers ("impossible or unreasonably difficult").

  We also want to say that clubs, in particular, are a place where changing people's attitudes to disabled people is as important as changing the law.

Recommendations

    —  The trigger for when discrimination occurs should be lowered to "substantial disadvantage".

    —  Money should be given to help change people's attitudes.

7.  HOUSING—CLAUSES 6 & 7

  We welcome this idea. It is really important that all disabled people have accessible and affordable housing in which they can live.

Recommendations

    —  We would like any definition of an "auxiliary aid" to include accessible tenancy agreements and other signage.

    —  Landlords should not be allowed to withhold consent unreasonably from a tenant who wishes to make changes to the physical features of their home.

8.  DISABILITY EQUALITY DUTY FOR PUBLIC AUTHORITIES—CLAUSE 8

  We warmly welcome this new idea and think it could have a number of good outcomes for people with a learning disability.

  We hope it will mean that local authorities will do more to end the regular harassment of people with a learning disability.

  We would like the Government to say more clearly how it will monitor specific employment duties. If people with a learning disability are still finding it difficult to get a job within public bodies, we would like to see positive measures to help them.

  It is not clear whether the new duties will remove the current gap in the law around the health needs of some pupils in education. At the moment, local education authorities, schools and governing bodies are responsible for the health and safety of pupils in their care. Part 4 of the Disability Discrimination Act is intended to solve the problem of discrimination against pupils. However, schools have not necessarily had to meet pupils' health needs all the time.

  We would like schools, further education and higher education institutions, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and general examination bodies to be included in any definition of a public authority. We would also like the Government to set out in more detail what specific duties will be applied to each of these public bodies.

  We would like the Government to provide further details on how these duties will work with other laws, particularly the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

Recommendations

    —  The Government should write a list of public authorities. This should include schools, further education and higher education institutions, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and general examination bodies. It should also say what a public authority is so that other bodies which the Government does not put in the list, but which match the description of a public body, would also be included under the new duties.

    —  The Government needs to say more clearly what the disability equality duties will mean for each public body, particularly in relation to education and employment.

    —  We want this new law to happen as soon as possible so that the Disability Rights Commission is able to decide exactly how the duties will work before the Commission for Human Rights and Equality takes over.

What's Missing from the Draft Bill?

  We think the following issues should also be included in the draft Bill:

9.  VOLUNTEERS

  Volunteering is one way for people with a learning disability to eventually get a paid job. Volunteers should therefore be covered under the Disability Discrimination Act powers.

10.  DISABILITY-RELATED ENQUIRIES

  Less than 10% of people with a learning disability are in employment. A person should not have to say they have a disability when they fill out a job application. An employer should only be allowed to ask if someone has a disability before a job is offered if it is absolutely necessary.

11.  PART 3 ENFORCEMENT

  One way to help people with a learning disability speak up against discrimination would be to have accessible tribunals rather than courts which are often too expensive and scary for people with a learning disability to use.

February 2004



 
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