(Minister of State for
Disabled People, Health and Work): Today I am
pleased to launch a new cross-government approach on disability
which is guided by a vision that recognises the contributions
that disabled people make and where disabled people can
participate fully in society. To drive forward this approach,
government will establish a new cross-departmental team in the
Cabinet Office, recognising that disabled people face barriers
across a wide range of aspects of their lives and coordinated
cross-government action is therefore vital.
To inform this new approach, government is committed to
strengthening the evidence base on disability and to improve
engagement with disabled people and disabled people’s
organisations, in line with relevant recommendations from the
United Nations.
The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for
Health and Social Care will consult on how employers can best
support disabled people and people with long-term health
conditions to stay and thrive in work. This will include measures
to reform Statutory Sick Pay so that it is better enforced, more
flexible and covers the lowest paid employees as well as improved
quality, cost effectiveness and capacity in the private sector
occupational health market.
Alongside this, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local
Government will consult on raising mandatory accessibility
standards for all new homes in Autumn. The Department for Work
and Pensions will also in the coming months bring forward a Green
Paper on health and disability support, to enable a conversation
about building a welfare system for the future that is an ally of
disabled people. The Department for Business, Energy and
Industrial Strategy will also be setting out plans to work with
departments, regulators and stakeholders to improve consumer
outcomes for disabled people through developing metrics to
compare how well companies deliver for disabled customers in
essential markets.
The team will work closely with disabled people, disabled
people’s organisations and charities to take forward this new
approach to disability, with their views and experiences at the
forefront of any new policy.
This written statement aligns with the Prime Minister’s written
statement tabled today on Machinery of Government change for the
Office for Disability Issues.
