Clause 22
Welfare Reform Bill
9:00 pm
Danny Alexander (Shadow Minister and Disability Spokesperson, Work & Pensions; Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, Liberal Democrat)
I shall be as brief as can be consistent with making the intentions behind my amendments clear. Amendments Nos. 196 and 163 probe the clause on issues relating to the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the Human RightsAct 1998, which we have discussed. We want to make the regulations subject to assessments on their impact on disability equality and subject to consultation with the Commission for Equality and Human Rights. As the Committee knows, that will shortly take over the Disability Rights Commission and the other equality organisations.
The thinking behind the amendments is that because of the importance attached to the public sector’s disability equality duty, to the 1998 Act and to the functions currently carried out by the Disability Rights Commission, it is important, given that the regulations—particularly under clauses 10 to 14—introduce a conditionality of benefits, that some mechanism should be in place. Making assessments on impacts on disability equality and requiring consultation with the Commission for Equality and Human Rights would help to ensure that before any regulations were published or dealt with, the commission could be satisfied that nothing proposed would in any way undermine the relevant duties. That would allow a degree of independent scrutiny, which would be welcome.
We have covered 1995 Act and the assessment of disability equality on previous clauses, and I am happy to leave it at that. I look forward to the Minister’s response.