UK Government signed up to UNCRPD on 30/03/2007

Ten years ago this coming Thursday, a UK Government signed up to the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities.(1)

I know because as the then London Green Party Disability Spokesperson, I was at a launch event at the Tottenham Court Road conference centre with a link to the signing ceremony at UN HQ in New York. The London event was hosted by disability charity Scope whose President was Cherie Booth -- the barrister wife of then UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. The New York event was attended by then Disability Minister Anne McGuire who was the one that signed the paper.

Representative statistics and unrepresentative national news media

I also recall the statistic being raised at the launch event that around one in five of the population had a disability of some sort. That statistic did not matter one bit to the UK's national press, who roundly ignored the event.

I would argue that that non-attendance has been largely responsible for what has transpired since in terms of UK government's reign of terror over disabled people. The same national news media that has apparently gone overboard in covering and retreading over last Thursday's 80 seconds of terrorist events around the UK Parliament seems to have vetoed the signing up by UK Government to legislation that would impact favourably on the lives of one in five of the UK population.

Dude Swheatie of Kwug

Note

1. http://www.un.org/press/en/2007/hr4914.doc.htm