Rights of disabled people may be at risk, says Human Rights Committee.

DPAC
Posted: 29 Feb 2012 04:30 PM PST


The joint committee on Human Rights (JCHR) today publishes its report on the implementation of the right of disabled people to independent living in the context of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) which was ratified by the UK in 2009. The report draws attention to a number of significant human rights issues, included:

• the need for free-standing legislation to protect the rights to independent living in UK law;

• the effect of current reforms to benefits and services on the ability of disabled people to enjoy independent living;

• the use of equality impact assessments, the effects of devolution on implementation of the UNCRPD, and hate crime.

The right to independent living does not exist as a freestanding right in UK law. Although it is protected and promoted to some extent by a matrix of rights,the Committee believes that this is not enough. It argues that the Government and other interested parties should immediately assess the need for, and feasibility of, legislation to establish obligations under the Convention  on that basis, and counter any public perception that it is a soft law.

The Committee finds that:

• the reforms to benefits and services risk leaving disabled people without the support they need to live independently;

• restrictions in local authority eligibility criteria for social care support, the replacement of Disability Living Allowance with Personal Independence Payment, the closure of the  Independent Living Fund and changes to housing benefits risk interacting in a particularly harmful way for disabled people;

• some people fear that the cumulative impact of these changes will force them out of their homes and local communities, and into residential care.

It also finds that:

• the Government had not conducted an assessment of the cumulative impact of current reforms on disabled people. The report urges them to do so, and to report on the extent to which these reforms are enabling them and local authorities to comply with their obligations under the UNCRPD;

• the UNCRPD did not appear to have played a significant role in the development of policy and legislation, as is required by the Convention. The Committee therefore argues that the Government should make a commitment to Parliament that they will give due consideration to the articles of the Convention when making legislation.

Further, the Committee deprecates changes to the duties of public authorities in England and under the Equality Act 2010, which no longer require the production of equality impact assessments of changes in policy, nor the involvement of disabled people in developing policies which will affect them.

The Committee finds variations in the manner in which the devolved administrations have implemented the Convention, and uncertainty as to the role the UK Government should play in ensuring implementation. The Report notes with disappointment the lack of a strategy in Northern Ireland to promote independent living and reminds the UK Government to acknowledge their responsibility to ensure implementation.

Dr Hywel Francis MP, Chair of the Committee, said: "We are concerned to learn that the right of disabled people to independent living may be at risk through the cumulative impact of current reforms. Even though the UK ratified the UNCRPD in 2009, with cross-party support, the Government is unable to demonstrate that sufficient regard has been paid to the Convention in the development of policy with direct relevance to the lives of disabled people. The right to independent living in UK law may need to be strengthened further, and we call on the Government and other interested organisations to consider the need for a freestanding right to independent living in UK law."

The members of the Committee are:

Baroness Berridge (Conservative)

Lord Bowness (Conservative)

Baroness Campbell of Surbiton (Cross-bencher)

Lord Dubs (Labour)

Lord Lester of Herne Hill (Liberal Democrat)

Lord Morris of Handsworth (Labour)

Rehman Chishdi MP (Conservative Gillingham and Rainham)

Mike Crockart MP (Liberal Democrat Edingburgh West)

Dr Hywel Francis MP (Labour Aberavon) (Chair)

Dr Dominic Raab MP (Conservative Esher and Walton)

Mr Virendra Sharma MP (Labour Ealing Southall)

Mr Richard Shepherd MP (Conservative Aldridge-Brownhills)

Mike Hennessy (House of Commons) 020 7219 2797

John Turner (House of Lords) 020 7219 6772

Enquiries: 020 7219 2467     Fax: 020 7219 8393

Email: jchr@parliament.uk

Homepage: http://www.parliament.uk/jchr

Media Enquiries: Liz Parratt: 07917 488978

Rosie Lee: March 1997 - February 2012.

On Friday 17th of this month, we had to make the decision that all pet owners have to, and take our lovely Lurcher, Rosie Lee, to the vets to be euthenised. It wasn't a decision we took lightly and, for a while, put it off with excuses that, while she was still eating, we felt she must have the will to keep living. But, when we went to the dog run to let her out first thing that morning, we could see at a glance that her whole system was closing down, and we knew that it was time.


We've both said that, to have to decide the time of our pet's death, felt like playing God, and hated the thought of it, but just that one look, and we knew it was the decent thing to do. Poor Rosie was struggling for breath, and she looked up at us with glazed eyes, as if begging for release. We wanted to weep that this amazing animal, who had given us 15 years of loving companionship, and who had been so full of life, so vital, and as fit as any dog half her age up until this last autumn, was now near her end.


As it happened, the vet said that we'd done the right thing and, as she struggled to find a viable vein to administer the shot, we could see that she was right. In the end, the vet had to shave a patch on her neck, as she just couldn't find a vein in her legs. We held her in our arms, and stroked her behind her ears as she'd always loved us to do, and the vet administered the shot. One breath, two - and she was gone. We cried, not so much for her passing, which we saw was so very quick and painless, but for the loss of our dearly loved friend. Even as I write this, I feel the tears welling again, but I know we had done the right thing for her.


We first knew about Rosie when we had a phone call from a good friend of ours, who belonged to the Dog Rescue in her area. She knew we were looking for a Lurcher, as we used ferrets to catch rabbits for the pot, and we wanted a Lurcher to stand by, in case any escaped the catch-nets. But she told us that the dog that had just been brought in was in a sad way. We knew what to expect, or so we thought, as we had helped rescue, heal, and re-home other dogs for our friend, but when she came to drop this new dog off with us, we couldn't believe the sight of her!


Our friend told us she had been found at the side of a busy motorway, tied up to a concrete block with a strand of old baling twine. She was stick thin, even for a Lurcher-type dog, and was practically bald with Mange! Our friend had taken Rosie to be checked over by her vet, and it was estimated that Rosie was coming up to, or was only just over, a year in age. The vet felt she could be saved with a lot of care and love, and so our friend contacted us, knowing how well we'd done with other rescue dogs. The first thing we did was to gently introduce ourselves to her, letting her sniff us as much as she wanted, and then her surroundings. We had converted our brick garage into separate runs, and we'd made a lovely, thick bed out of blankets for her, with a water bucket, a feeding bowl, and a selection of dog toys in the main area of the run. We put a small amount of food into the dish, and she practically inhaled it, but we knew she would need to be fed small and often over the next few days, possibly even more, until her stomach got used to eating regularly again.


We had been fortunate in having a large amount of mange treatments, and vetchem for keeping the kennels clean, as Rosie had Sarcoptic mange, bless her, which meant isolation and regular treatments, as it is highly infectious in mammals. With a whole list of do's and dont's from the vet who had initially seen Rosie, we started her treatment. At this stage, because she was almost completely bald, we had no idea what her colouring, or patterning, was but, gradually, as we beat the mange, her fur started to grow back until, when she was totally free of it, we had ourselves the most gorgeous black lurcher, with a small white bib, and four white paws. 


From the very first day of her residence, Rosie was a perfect patient, never growling or snapping at us during her regular treatments, even though she must have been in a lot of pain. She was a perfect lady at home, except when being fed, where the food was almost inhaled in seconds. That was something that didn't change for most of her life, and it was only when she turned 14 or so, that her appetite abated even slightly. Once we had got her cleared of mange, we introduced her to our other furry friends. One of her favourites was our ginger queen, Thomasina, who, although only a quarter of Rosie's size, immediately adopted her for her own. At that time, we also had a Lurcher dog, called Fly and, with one glance, he fell in love with our Rosie! They were constant companions until the day Fly died.


When she was well enough for Bob to start taking her out for walks, the very first day they went further than the local fields, she shot off in hot pursuit of a rabbit even Hubby hadn't seen, and proudly brought it back to Hubby - still alive! She turned out to be the most soft-mouthed of any dog we've ever owned, and practically every single time she caught a rabbit, it was brought back in the same state, which was good, as we could then release any we didn't need for food. When she first came, she didn't have a name but, once Hubby had seen her run, he realised that she must have been a gypsy dog to have such training already, and so we called her Rosie Lee, after Gypsy Rose Lee :)


We had 15 wonderful years of companionship with Rosie, who treated every new addition to the family with a very dignified love. No matter what the addition was - and at that time, our daughter was bringing home all kinds of weird and wonderful creatures, for us to either care for until they were well enough for release back into the wild, or for re-homing - Rosie Lee either loved, or tolerated them. She became my husband's shadow almost from the second she arrived in our home, and I would only do as second best if he wasn't around for her to gaze adoringly at :)


We miss our girl, but feel so fortunate to have had her love and devotion for 15 amazing years.


Rest in peace, Rosie Lee.