Disabled Persons (Independent Living)Bill [HL]

My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a second time. Its purpose is literally to transform the lives of Britain’s 11 million disabled people from those of frustration to those of fulfilment. By providing a legislative framework for rights to independent living, it is both an idealistic and a practical proposition. I have worked closely with the Disability Rights Commission, which is splendidly led by Bert Massie, and with Caroline Ellis and her colleagues. They have worked extraordinarily hard to make the Bill a success. I warmly appreciate their wise counsel and assistance. I am also delighted with the excellent report from the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit, Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People, and its support for independent living. This gives the Government a fine opportunity to implement many of its recommendations, strongly commended by the Prime Minister. Disabled people historically have been regarded as second-class or even third-class citizens. As the Prime Minister has said, one in five British adults is disabled and they can find themselves cut off from the opportunities others enjoy. Disabled people are more likely to live in poverty, to have fewer educational opportunities and to experience prejudice and abuse. Most have low expectations. Only 50 per cent of disabled people of working age are in employment compared with 80 per cent of the non-disabled. That one-fifth of our population is, incredibly, an underclass. We need to elevate our objective from providing subsistence to comprehensive rights of equality and independence. Support for disabled people is fragmented, resulting in confusion and stress. Deserving people are being denied proper support. In fact, 70 per cent of our councils now offer services only to people whose needs are judged substantial or critical, so that the social security net is full of holes and those who should be included are inevitably excluded. The rights they have are strictly limited. Rights to services mainly mean help with being washed and fed rather than comprehensive rights which enable independence. For example, there are no positive rights in existing legislation to enable disabled people to choose where they live and no legal protection against them being forced to live in institutional care against their wishes, which is scandalous. There is no legal entitlement to advocacy except in limited circumstances, nor to communication support, both of which are crucial. There are no rights of support to cover a disabled person who moves to a different part of the country. They have to start all over again and negotiate a new care package from scratch. Think of all the stress and frustration involved. People with mental health problems have no right to assessment or support for their mental health needs. The notorious postcode lottery blights provision of services all over the country. It is luck rather than judgment as to who actually gets what. Fancy that, in the year 2006. It is a question of pure luck. Advances made over the past few years with legislation have been helpful, but limited and piecemeal. It is now time to dispense with this ad hoc approach and adopt a master plan which guarantees—yes, guarantees—genuine independent living for disabled people, and we should underpin civil rights with entitlements to practical support. Disabled people have as strong a claim to a normal life as anyone else, and this Bill seeks to provide basic rights which have long eluded them. It seeks a change in attitude, in culture, in practice and in the law. The key objective is that disabled people of all ages should have the same freedoms, choice, dignity and control as all other citizens at home, at work and in the community. This means that they must be provided with practical assistance and support to participate in society and to live an ordinary life. That is not a lot to ask, but it is absolutely crucial. The basic premise for action, confirmed by members of the Independent Living Movement, is that disabled people need two vital things: personal assistance and accessibility. The stark alternatives are to be a burden on their families or live in an institution. If we are serious about enabling independent living, we simply have to provide those vital necessities. Under the Bill the Secretary of State will be required to draw up a strategic plan for independent living, and to promote and pursue it. Each local authority and National Health Service body will have to do likewise. The local authority will be required to compile a record of all disabled people in its area so that we know exactly who is disabled, what their disabilities are and where they live. The Bill will place a duty on local authorities and National Health Service bodies to co-operate between themselves and key partners to provide the means of independent living. It will require them to pool funds wherever necessary to deliver the duties in the Bill. This will avoid the multiple assessments, delays and fragmentation that occur at present. There are significant economic benefits to be gained from this. The Bill provides a clear right to a comprehensive assessment of disabled people’s requirements for assistance and support. This right to a self-assessment of their requirements is an absolutely crucial part of the Bill and will ensure that any support given to disabled people is what they want, rather than their having to wait for the local authority to give them what it thinks they ought to have. So far, disabled people have been expected to fit into services, but the Bill provides that services should be personalised after assessment and therefore suit the person. It also provides that disabled people should be empowered to determine where they live and who they live with—another crucial point. This ensures that no one can be obliged to live in an institution against their will. If and when the Bill becomes an Act, it will be unlawful to force anyone into an institution against their will. The authorities will have to identify all the disabled people in their area and maintain a register. They will have to provide a wide range of assistance, such as communication aids and other forms of helpful equipment and technology, independent advocacy and practical assistance in the home and elsewhere. There will be a new system of individualised budgets. The present range of different funding streams to help with personal care, support, equipment and adaptations will be brought together. Disabled people will be able to use their individual budgets, in the form of cash or services or a mixture of both, to spend as they wish on housing, equipment, personal assistance, transport or whatever they desire. A crucial part of the Bill is that regulations will be made specifying minimum outcomes. This is designed to prevent any authority wriggling out of its responsibilities. The minimum outcome is a crucial part of the Bill and regulations will be made so that there is no doubt where the responsibility lies. Of course, these changes will have to be paid for. On the other hand, we should not lose sight of the very important economic benefits of investing in independent living. As people become independent and return to work, they will be earning from employment and, as they pay taxes, there will be savings on the social security budget. There will also be a reduction in the demand for health and social services as people become active and get back to work, so there will be a transformation in people’s attitudes towards the costs. The Bill creates a disability housing service. Each local authority will have to compile a list of accessible properties and a record of disabled people requiring such properties, and then provide a matching service. The terrible shortfall of accessible housing will no longer be a bugbear because people will be able to be fitted to properties through this matching service. All new dwellings of whatever type will have to meet minimum standards of access. This will result in a huge cost-saving for local authorities by avoiding the heavy costs of later adaptations. Together, these reforms will dramatically enhance the life chances of disabled people and their families and reduce waste and inefficiency. The Bill will also promote opportunities for carers to create a truly sustainable approach for independent living. I hope that today I have planted a seed in Parliament that will be transformed into a mighty piece of legislation, giving to Britain’s disabled people the freedom and independence they cherish and which they have been denied for too long. The Bill is a blueprint for the future, but the time to embrace it is now. In the long, slow march of disabled people to freedom and independence, they have made limited progress. They desperately need a drastic change in tempo if they are to approach their ultimate objective. This Bill is the key that opens the way for them to equality, independence, freedom and dignity. It is a great vision. Let us make it a reality. Moved, That the Bill be now read a second time.—(Lord Ashley of Stoke.)