§ Mr. KaufmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 4 June from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs. Howarth (Fallows). [127746]
§ Mr. BlunkettI have been asked to reply.
A response was sent to my right hon. Friend on 16 July 2003.
Measures December 1997 Set up the Disability Rights Task Force to consider how best to secure our 1997 Manifesto commitment to look at comprehensive and enforceable civil rights for disabled people December 1998 Employment provisions of Disability Discrimination Act extended to employers with 15 or more employees(previously 20 or more) January 1999 All new rail vehicles to comply with Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations July 1999 Assent. Disability Rights Commission Act 1999 gains Royal Commission opens in April 2000 October 1999 Further DDA rights of access to goods and services came into force, meaning service providers have to alter a policy, practice or procedure which prevents a disabled person accessing a service, or to provide an auxiliary aid or service, or provide a service by a reasonably alternative means October 2000 Government agrees the EU Article 13 Employment Directive to combat discrimination in employment and vocational training on grounds of disability, age, religion/belief, sexual orientation December 2000 All new full size single deck buses over 7.5 tonnes and double deck buses to be fully accessible to disabled people, including wheelchair users; new buses up to 7.5 tonnes and coaches to have improved access for ambulant and sensory impaired passengers May 2001 Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 (SENDA) gains Royal Assent. The Act brings within scope of the DDA's discrimination provisions disabled pupils and students September 2002 First duties of SENDA come into force in September 2002 March 2003 Regulations introduced to require taxi drivers to accept assistance dogs and to carry them free of charge April 2003 The Disability Discrimination (Blind and Partially Sighted Persons) Regulations 2003 came into force. People who are certified as blind or partially sighted, or registered as blind or partially sighted by a local authority, automatically deemed disabled for DDA purposes July 2003 DDA 1995 (Amendment) Regulations 2003 approved by Parliament. These include significant measures that will bring over 1 million additional employers, and a further 7 million jobs, within the scope of the DDA. Measures come into effect in October 2004. They implement disability provisions of the Article 13 Employment Directive November 2003 Began public consultation on setting an end date for rail vehicle accessibility and for refurbishment of rail vehicles November 2003 Laid Regulations to give effect to the Article 13 Directive's requirements as they affect occupational pension schemes for disabled employees. Measures come into effect in October 2004