Equality Act response from Leonard Cheshire Disability
8 April 2010 Commenting on the Equality Act being passed through Parliament, John Knight, Director of Policy and Campaigns at the charity Leonard Cheshire Disability said: “The passing of the new Equality Act is an important step – the Act closes some of the loopholes that have developed in disabled people’s rights whilst also preserving key features of the law at the moment. Leonard Cheshire Disability is delighted that many of key improvements that we and others in the disability sector argued for were made whilst the Act was passing through Parliament. “But the key now will be to make sure that the Act works for disabled people up and down the country, and that disabled people are aware of their rights, and are able to challenge discrimination when they face it. “Leonard Cheshire Disability will be releasing a new report next week looking at how we can ensure that disabled people can actually use the law to challenge discrimination and make society more accessible for everyone.”-Ends-
Editors Notes The Equality Act has now been agreed by Parliament and will receive Royal Assent. The Act replicates the provisions set out in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, along with other pieces of equality legislation, and also makes a number of changes to the current legislation. Leonard Cheshire Disability has been working throughout the development of the Act to try to ensure that the legislation preserves and enhances disabled people’s rights – in particular we have worked along with other members of the Disability Charities Consortium (DCC) to lobby for changes and improvements to the Act.
The Equality Act will eventually replace the Disability Discrimination Act, although the changes and developments in the Act will not come in to force immediately, but will be introduced over time with the majority of provisions coming in to force in October 2010.
More information on what is contained in the Act can be found through the website of the Government Equalities Office here: www.equalities.gov.uk
Leonard Cheshire Disability supports over 21,000 disabled people in the UK and works in 52 countries. We campaign for change and provide innovative services that give disabled people the opportunity to live life their way.