The equality watchdog’s commissioners are to be asked to approve a programme that will make more than half of its staff redundant. Union representatives who obtained the plans for the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) say the cuts would leave […]
News Archive
BBC wins radio rights to 2012 Paralympics
The BBC has won the UK radio rights to broadcast coverage of the London 2012 Paralympics on its Radio 5 Live news and sports station. The BBC said it would broadcast an estimated 25 hours of programmes and news on Radio […]
Minister feels the anger during welfare reform webchat
A minister has been forced to confront the depth of anger and fear felt by people with mental health conditions over the government’s welfare reforms. Chris Grayling the employment minister, took part in a live online question and answer session organised […]
Labour backs majority of government’s welfare agenda
Labour’s new shadow work and pensions secretary has backed large sections of the coalition government’s welfare reforms, but has criticised some of its cuts to disability benefits as “not compassionate”. In a speech to the Institute for Public Policy Research, Liam […]
Government ‘caused misleading stories’ with DLA information
The government has been accused of causing disabled people “significant alarm” after releasing information about disability living allowance (DLA) that led to “misleading” media coverage. The complaint came in a letter from the Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC) – a coalition of […]
Miller’s online DLA answers spark fury
Disabled people have reacted furiously to the minister for disabled people after she took part in an online question and answer session about the government’s disability living allowance (DLA) reforms. Maria Miller answered just seven of scores of questions posted by […]
Council delivers death blow to leading self-advocacy organisation
One of the country’s leading self-advocacy organisations will be forced to close next month, after a council withdrew its funding without any warning. Members of People First Lambeth (PFL), run by people with learning difficulties and set up in 1985, said […]
Maynard faced disablist abuse from Labour MPs ‘more than once’
A disabled MP who claimed he was mocked over his impairment by Labour MPs in a Commons debate believes similar abuse has taken place on several occasions. The Conservative MP Paul Maynard, who has cerebral palsy, revealed in a newspaper interview […]
EHRC boss calls for government to take equality action on recovery
The head of the equality watchdog has called on the government to ensure that the recovery from recession does not leave disabled people and other minority groups behind. Trevor Phillips, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), said in […]
Spending cuts ‘risk reversing decades of progress’
Government spending cuts risk reversing decades of progress towards more independence and control for people with learning difficulties, according to leading members of the self-advocacy movement. Two prominent activists with learning difficulties spoke out this week as they backed a new […]