• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • About DNS
  • Subscribe to DNS
  • Advertise with DNS
  • Support DNS
  • Contact DNS

Disability News Service

the country's only news agency specialising in disability issues

  • Home
  • Independent Living
    • Arts, Culture and Sport
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Employment
    • Housing
    • Transport
  • Activism & Campaigning
  • Benefits & Poverty
  • Politics
  • Human Rights
You are here: Home / Human Rights / ‘Frustration’ at two-month wait for EHRC’s new disability commissioner
Lord Holmes speaking to a parliamentary committee

‘Frustration’ at two-month wait for EHRC’s new disability commissioner

By John Pring on 16th March 2017 Category: Human Rights

Listen

Members of the committee set up to lead on the equality watchdog’s work on disabled people’s rights are said to be frustrated at the government’s continuing failure to appoint a new disability commissioner.

The previous commissioner, Lord [Chris] Holmes (pictured), left his post as planned on 14 January, and interviews for his replacement are believed to have been carried out in December, while an appointment had been expected in mid-January.

Two months on, no appointment has been made, even though the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is engaged in several pieces of high-profile, disability-related work, including an inquiry into the impact of welfare reforms on the human rights of disabled people and other minority groups, and an inquiry into disabled people’s housing.

As well as being an EHRC board member, the successful candidate will chair the commission’s disability committee, although that committee is about to be disbanded and replaced by an advisory group that will not have the same legal powers to make decisions on issues affecting disabled people.

One member of the committee, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “I think all of us would say that it is frustrating not to have clarity on this to inform the future of disability at the commission.”

The disability committee was given significant powers by the Equality Act 2006 to take important disability-related decisions within EHRC, for example allowing it to overrule commission officers on critical and strategically-important legal cases.

But the committee will now have just one more meeting, on Monday, before it loses this statutory status at the end of this month.

The committee is currently being chaired in an acting capacity by its vice-chair, Dr Rachel Perkins.

EHRC said yesterday (Wednesday) that it had not yet been told by the government when it would appoint a new disability commissioner, and could not comment on the appointment process.

But an EHRC spokesman said: “We hope that the secretary of state will soon appoint the new disability commissioner and that they can take up their position as soon as possible.

“Our important work on disability rights continues, and we will soon be publishing the biggest ever report into the lives of disabled people in Britain.”

A spokesman for the Department for Education, EHRC’s sponsor department, declined to explain why no appointment had yet been made, although he admitted that it had taken “slightly longer than expected”.

He said: “We will be making an announcement in due course.”

He said the department was aware of its statutory duty to appoint a disability commissioner who is or has been disabled.

The government has previously refused to say how many people were interviewed for the role, although it has confirmed that the successful candidate – when they are finally appointed – will be someone who is or has been a disabled person.

Share this post:

Share on X (Twitter)Share on FacebookShare on WhatsAppShare on RedditShare on LinkedIn

Tags: Disability commissioner EHRC Lord Holmes

A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Related

Equality watchdog must investigate ‘urgent threat’ posed by Labour policies, say DPOs
22nd May 2025
Labour’s cuts to PIP will drag a quarter of a million people into absolute poverty, DWP figures show
27th March 2025
Online provider charges disabled students thousands more for same qualification in ‘blatant discrimination’
27th March 2025

Primary Sidebar

On the left of the image are multiple heads of different colours - white, aqua, red, light brown, and dark green - all grouped together, then the words ‘Campaign for Disability Justice. Sign up to support. #OpportunitySecurityRespect’
A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Access

Latest Stories

Government ignores warnings of new DWP deaths, and UN intervention, as MPs pass universal credit cuts bill

Urgent letter from UN to Labour government warns: We think your cuts continue Tory attack on disability rights

Race against time to secure DWP deaths evidence before parliament passes new benefit cuts bill

‘Complete shift in thinking’ needed on education of disabled children, says ALLFIE

Minister ignored concerns from disabled advisers, months before publishing cuts bill

Frustration after government only issues partial ban on new floating bus stops

Report suggests five big ideas that could transform disabled people’s mobility

My new book shows exactly why we need the disability movement, says disabled author

‘Disastrous’ cuts bill that leaves legacy of distrust and distress ‘must be dropped’

Four disabled Labour MPs stand up to government over cuts to disability benefits

Advice and Information

Readspeaker
A photograph shows an audience raising their hands in a BSL sign. The words say: 'BSL Conference 2025. The future starts with us. Leeds 17-18 July. Be part of shaping the future of Deaf cultures and identities. Get 10% off with BDA10'

Footer

The International Standard Serial Number for Disability News Service is: ISSN 2398-8924

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site map
  • Bluesky
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Threads
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2025 Disability News Service

Site development by A Bright Clear Web