Speaking at today’s Disability Wales National Summit on Brexit and Disabled People, North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood emphasised that the UK Government has stated that “there will be no change to rights for disabled people” now we have left the EU.
Mr Isherwood, who is Chair of the Assembly Cross Party Group on Disability, said the UK Government has made it clear that it wants the UK to lead a "global race to the top" in rights and standards for disabled people, not a "competitive race to the bottom".
He said:
“I was pleased to learn last week that the Prime Minister has written to every UK Cabinet Minister asking them to review how their Department can help lower barriers that disabled people face in their everyday lives.
“Their findings are expected within weeks so that a UK Government Green Paper setting out a new UK Government Strategy for Disabled People can be published by the summer”.
He added: “The UK Equality Act came into force on 1 October 2010, bringing together over 116 separate pieces of legislation into one single Act.
“It provides the UK with a discrimination law which protects individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair and more equal society.
“Disability is a protected characteristic under this Act, which applies to all public authorities, including local authorities, police officers and courts and tribunals, and to all other bodies, whether public or private, performing public functions.
“Brexit does not change any of this and organisations which fail to act accordingly are already acting unlawfully”.
He added:
“At a devolved level, both the Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act and Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act require public bodies to do things with people, not to or for them. Brexit does not change this either”.
Mr Isherwood also pointed out that leaving the EU does not affect our rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as this comes from the Council of Europe, not the EU, and the UK Government has clearly stated that the UK is committed to membership of the ECHR.
ENDS
