The Government is at risk of being accused of “systematic violation” of international human rights laws in its treatment of disabled people, according to a recent report compiled by a consortium of 80 national charities.
The Just Fair report says that the Government’s austerity measures and welfare reforms, such as bedroom tax, have undermined the rights of the disabled people causing them significant hardship. It also calls for the inclusion of the right to independent living into UK law to make it binding upon policymakers.
In addition, the report said that support structures for many disabled Britons have disappeared, or are under threat, as local authorities cut social care budgets, while benefits cuts will leave many disabled people without vital assistance for daily living.
Aoife Nolan, a professor of international human rights law at the University of Nottingham and a trustee of Just Fair said that the Government’s policies were undermining the human rights of disabled people.
She added that, not only do these policies cause significant hardship and anxiety, but they also amount to impermissible backward steps in relation to disabled people’s human rights, contrary to the UN human rights framework.
However, responding to the charities’ report, Disability Minister Mike Penning denied that the Government is breaching international human rights laws, claiming that the reforms are aimed at “fixing a broken welfare system.”
He added that the Government is spending around £50bn a year on disabled people and their services and that its reforms will make sure that the money spent gives more targeted support and better reflects today’s understanding of disability.
Just Fair will be submitted to the United Nations (UN), which is in the process of reviewing Britain’s compliance with its obligations to the rights of disabled people.