Report censures Government on rights convention delay

By Sunil Peck

A cross-parliamentary committee has criticised the government for failing to explain its delay in ratifying a United Nations convention promoting the human rights of disabled people.

The UK government was one of the first to sign up to the treaty and had pledged to ratify it by the end of 2008.

In its report, the Joint Select Committee on Human Rights, which is made up of MPs and peers, criticised the government for an "unacceptable" lack of transparency in its approach to ratifying the convention. It said that the government had "alienated" disabled people and their organisations.

Dr Alice Maynard, Chair of disability charity Scope, said that she hoped that the report's findings would encourage the Government to accelerate its efforts to ratify the convention.

She added: "Scope shares many of the concerns raised in this report. The Government has been dragging its feet on this treaty which is of huge importance for disabled people - both in its potential to make a difference to our daily lives and as a symbol of our equal citizenship."

Richard Rieser, of the United Nations Convention Campaign Coalition, welcomed the report which he said would raise awareness of the government's tactics among MPs.

He said that the coalition's priority was for the convention to be ratified with no opt outs.

He said: "One of the things government hides behind is that it is waiting for Europe to ratify. Yet the German parliament has ratified it without reservation and so has Sweden. I think that there is every chance that the French will ratify it in the next month and Italy won't be far behind, so the big countries in Europe are not waiting for general agreement in Europe."

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has also written to John Hutton, the Secretary of State for Defence, Ed Balls, the Secretary of State for Children, Families and Schools, James Purnell, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions , and Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, asking them to explain and justify the opt outs their departments are seeking to secure.

The Joint committee report welcomed the government's pledge to ratify the convention by Spring 2009. But it said that it would be "extremely disappointed" if the convention was ratified without any consultations with disabled people over opt outs.

Jonathan Shaw, Minister for Disabled People, said: "We welcome the Committee's support for UK ratification of the Convention  and will study its report in detail."

He added: "We share the view that ratification sends a strong signal that the Government takes equality and the protection of human rights for disabled people seriously. That is why we are committed to ratification of the Convention, and our ambition is to do so in the Spring."