The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been accused of a “brazen repetition of a known lie” about the impact on disabled people of one of the government’s major spending cuts, following the publication of a damning new report. The report […]
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Rail regulator’s access recommendations welcomed, ‘but do not go far enough’
Accessible transport campaigners have broadly welcomed a series of recommendations for improvements to the accessibility of the rail system. Among the 17 recommendations made by the regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), is a call for a drastic reduction in […]
DWP decision to block DNS jobcentre invite is ‘extension of hostile environment’
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been accused of an “appalling” attack on press freedom and disabled people’s rights after blocking a request by Disability News Service (DNS) to interview staff in one of its jobcentres. A leaked memo in […]
More than half of disabled passengers still find air travel difficult, says regulator
More than half of passengers who describe themselves as having an impairment that limits their day-today activity find travelling by air difficult, according to a regulator’s annual report on access at the UK’s major airports. The Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) annual report […]
Second charity backs Justice for Jodey following snub by 12 disability organisations
A second national disability charity has joined Mind in backing a petition that calls for an independent inquiry into links between Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) failings and the deaths of disabled benefit claimants. Disability Rights UK (DR UK) and Mind […]
New ‘radical history’ of disabled people’s movement ‘has lessons for today’
A new “radical history” of the disabled people’s movement is set to throw new light on the contribution made by one of its most influential figures. The launch of No Limits: The Disabled People’s Movement, A Radical History, took place last Friday […]
Hancock confronted over hospital parking charges for disabled patients
The health secretary has been confronted by a campaigner after government figures revealed the number of hospitals charging disabled people to use their carparks rose by 12 per cent in just a year. Kush Kanodia, a disabled ambassador for Disability Rights UK […]
Secret PIP files show one in three assessments by Capita had significant flaws
More than a third of disability assessment reports completed by a government contractor have been found to be significantly flawed, according to secret government files. The proportion of substandard personal independence payment (PIP) reports completed by outsourcing giant Capita has risen to […]
New EU figures demolish government claims of ‘world-leading generosity’ on disability
New figures obtained by Disability News Service (DNS) have demolished ministerial claims that the UK is one of the most generous countries in the world in its support for disabled people. Rather than being one of the most generous, the UK’s spending […]
Ministerial group on disability met just three times in a year, DWP admits
A cross-government group of ministers set up to drive forward action to tackle the barriers faced by disabled people has met just three times in more than a year, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has admitted. The group of 11 […]
DWP’s ‘universal credit Metro lies’ backfire by sparking new campaign network
A Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) advertising campaign that is now being investigated by a watchdog has backfired by helping to create a national network of campaigners opposed to its new universal credit benefit system, say disabled activists. The advertising watchdog […]
Protests force council climbdown over inaccessible Peterloo memorial
Disabled activists and their allies have forced a council into a significant climbdown over its “discriminatory” plans for a memorial to victims of the Peterloo massacre. Manchester City Council (MCC) said this week that it had asked artist Jeremy Deller to examine […]
UN rapporteur hears of disabled asylum-seekers evicted by social services
A UN human rights expert has been told that disabled asylum-seekers in Bristol have been evicted by social services, and have even been told that being made “street homeless” will make them more independent. Professor Felipe González, the UN’s special rapporteur for […]
Two-thirds of disabled passengers face at least one problem when travelling by rail
Two-thirds of disabled passengers experience at least one problem when travelling by rail, according to research commissioned by the government. The research was carried out in 2017 but was only published this week when the Department for Transport (DfT) marked a year […]
Disabled governor’s anger over hospital’s parking charges sparks new campaign
A disabled governor of a leading London hospital has accused its executives of arrogance and a “disgraceful” lack of compassion after they decided to start charging holders of blue badges to use their carpark. Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust agreed […]
Tomlinson misleads Abrahams over cover-up as MPs debate DWP deaths cover-up
The minister for disabled people is today (Thursday) facing questions over why he misled a senior Labour MP about his department’s cover-up of links between its “fitness for work” test and the deaths of disabled people. The failure by Justin Tomlinson to […]
‘Reckless or negligent?’ DWP’s decade-long failure to assess universal credit impact
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has admitted an “extraordinary” failure over nearly a decade to carry out any detailed calculations on how universal credit will affect different groups of disabled people. DWP has always admitted there would be winners and […]
Silence from Hunt’s former department over sexual abuse inquiry evidence
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has refused to say if it kept its promise to pass evidence about a former senior civil servant – twice arrested over unconnected rape allegations – to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. […]
Disability charities reject request to back Jodey Whiting deaths petition
Many of the country’s biggest disability charities have refused to back a petition that calls for an inquiry into the links between the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the deaths of disabled benefit claimants. The charities – none of which […]
‘Breakthrough’ Lords report gives boost to campaign for free care
A new parliamentary report that calls on the government to introduce free personal care has been branded a “major breakthrough” for campaigns led by disabled people and their grassroots organisations for a national independent living service. The report, by the House of […]
Failures on reasonable adjustments by trio of councils ‘are tiny tip of iceberg’
Rulings by an ombudsman that show how three London councils discriminated against disabled people with invisible impairments by failing to make their services accessible are just “a tiny tip of an iceberg”, according to a disabled people’s organisation. Inclusion London spoke out […]