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The noble Lord, Lord Addington, and the noble Baroness, Lady Masham, raised issues about awareness and behaviour, and how we can generate culture change. We agree with those views. The Government legislated for this with the equality duty and major awareness work has been undertaken. The ODI and the Government are promoting disability awareness widely and continuously, but we acknowledge that changing behaviour and attitudes will take time.

The noble Lord, Lord Low, spoke about people who are blind or partially sighted. The Government’s policy is of course to improve the life chances of disabled people, including those with visual impairments, by promoting their inclusion and participation in community life and enabling them to have more control over their lives. Rehabilitation services for blind and partially sighted people are provided predominantly by local authorities, and to some extent NHS trusts. It is for those organisations to plan, develop and improve services for local people, and there has been a substantial increase in resources to enable them to do so.

The noble Baroness, Lady Wilkins, raised some significant issues around housing. In brief I can say

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that the independent living review will be a cross-government project led by the Office for Disability Issues. Initially it will take some 12 months and will bring together the views and experiences of officials from central and local government, disabled people and their organisations, to look at developing imaginative new solutions in the area not only of housing but also of health, social care, transport and employment. I acknowledge that these are all important issues which need to be addressed. The noble Lord, Lord Addington, pressed us on the cross-government approach and working together. The whole rationale of ODI is to get cross-government policy discussions and co-ordination to achieve substantial equality for disabled people within a generation.

I am sure there are other questions which I have not dealt with in detail, but I will read the record and write as I have promised. I am also conscious that this response is in some part a statement of work in progress, but I hope noble Lords will acknowledge our determination to ratify the convention as soon as possible. Should anyone doubt our determination to see this through, I would pray in aid the Government’s record on human and civil rights for disabled people, from the Disability Rights Task Force being established in 1997 through to setting up the Office for Disability Issues in 2005 and the launching of Equality 2025. We have made clear the need to challenge and defeat the ignorance, prejudice, superstition and fear which still govern much of society’s response to disability. This we will continue to do.

Lord Low of Dalston: My Lords, I draw to the noble Lord’s attention the fact that the European Commission has moved on in its position and now recognises that the time has come to move beyond employment towards a general directive, covering not only disability but other strands of discrimination that are not currently covered—age, religion and so on. Indeed, the Commission will launch a consultation this summer on how it might be possible to move forward in that direction within the next year or so. I hope that when the consultation is launched the Government might be willing to take a slightly more positive attitude towards it than the Minister evinced in his wind-up.

Lord McKenzie of Luton: My Lords, we would certainly engage with a process of that nature—and do so fully and enthusiastically.

House adjourned at 7.55 pm.

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