McGuire to co-chair parliamentary group

By Sunil Peck

The former Minister for Disabled People Anne McGuire has spoken of her "pleasure” at being elected to co-chair the All Party Parliamentary Disability Group (APPDG).

Ms McGuire, Labour MP for Stirling, held the post of Minister for Disabled People between 2005 and 2008 and gained respect and affection among campaigners for championing disability rights. But she lost her job after a ministerial reshuffle.

She was elected to co-chair the APPDG along with Baroness [Jane] Campbell of Surbiton who was re-elected as Co-Chair.

Commenting on the election, Ms McGuire said: "It's a real pleasure to become the co-chair of the group. I've worked closely with Jane and with others over the years and I think we will have some interesting challenges ahead."

She added: "There is a real role for this group to play in how we work with government to ensure that the progress that has been made on rights for disabled people continues to be made and that we do see the achievement of the aim of true equality by 2025."

Ms McGuire replaces Roger Berry who co-chaired the APPDG before he lost the seat of Kingswood at the 2010 general election.

Baroness Campbell paid tribute to the work Roger Berry had done to promote disability rights over the last 18 years and described him as a "tireless campaigner".