• 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 / Politics / Tory conference: Newton ‘breaches ministerial code’ while dodging questions
Sarah Newton standing and speaking, alongside four men sitting down, with words behind her on the screen about listening to disabled people

Tory conference: Newton ‘breaches ministerial code’ while dodging questions

By John Pring on 4th October 2018 Category: Politics

Listen

The minister for disabled people appears to have breached the ministerial code of conduct, after refusing to answer questions at her party’s annual conference and suggesting that civil servants could answer them for her instead.

Sarah Newton’s office had failed to respond to emails requesting an interview sent in advance of the conference by Disability News Service (DNS).

And when approached by DNS before a fringe event run by the Conservative Disability Group on Sunday, Newton said she would not answer any questions at conference, either in person or by email.

After DNS failed in a bid to ask Newton a question during the fringe event (pictured), she also refused afterwards to answer even one question about her work as minister for disabled people.

Newton suggested instead that DNS should submit questions to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) press office, even though DWP would not be able to answer those questions because civil servants are not allowed to play any part in political events.

This would be a breach of the Civil Service Code, which says civil servants should not “act in a way that is determined by party political considerations, or use official resources for party political purposes”.

The ministerial code of conduct says that ministers “must uphold the political impartiality of the Civil Service, and not ask civil servants to act in any way which would conflict with the Civil Service Code”.

Despite dodging questions from the disabled editor of DNS, John Pring, Newton told the fringe event: “In my role, it is really important to me that I spend my time listening to people with disabilities and health conditions and this is something that I do day in, day out.”

Asked whether Newton would face any action for apparently breaching the ministerial code of conduct, the Conservative party had refused to comment by noon today (Thursday).

 

A note from the editor:

Please consider making a voluntary financial contribution to support the work of DNS and allow it to continue producing independent, carefully-researched news stories that focus on the lives and rights of disabled people and their user-led organisations.

Please do not contribute if you cannot afford to do so, and please note that DNS is not a charity. It is run and owned by disabled journalist John Pring and has been from its launch in April 2009. 

Thank you for anything you can do to support the work of DNS…

 

Share this post:

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

Tags: civil service Conservatives CPC18 DWP ministerial code of conduct Sarah Newton

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

Reviews into deaths and other harm linked to universal credit nearly double… as MPs vote for billions in cuts
17th July 2025
Badenoch silence after ‘ticking time bomb’ claim is exposed as a lie by official figures
17th July 2025
Government ignores warnings of new DWP deaths, and UN intervention, as MPs pass universal credit cuts bill
10th July 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

Liz Kendall stops herself just in time from lying about PIP cuts, as she argues with disabled MP

New analysis shows disabled people’s strongest allies among MPs

Government’s ‘weak’ evacuation plans for disabled high-rise residents ‘fail to learn the lessons of Grenfell’

Air travel accessibility report could lead to ‘tangible’ improvements, but progress depends on industry

Reviews into deaths and other harm linked to universal credit nearly double… as MPs vote for billions in cuts

Regulator’s report on rail assistance ‘shows it is still failing to acknowledge right to turn up and go’

Badenoch silence after ‘ticking time bomb’ claim is exposed as a lie by official figures

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

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