SUMMARY
Summary
There are growing numbers of adults with learning disabilities in the UK. The extent to which the rights of adults with learning disabilities are being respected raises fundamental issues of humanity, dignity, equality, respect and autonomy: all key human rights principles. The Committee's inquiry was extended and wide-ranging. The Committee wanted to ensure that its inquiry was accessible and relevant for adults with learning disabilities. This Report is accompanied by an Easy Read summary and an audio version of that summary (paragraphs 1-15).
Despite marked improvements in the past thirty years in the lives of adults with learning disabilities, including the closure of long stay hospitals, there have been a number of recent failures in healthcare, including cases of abuse, neglect and ill-treatment of adults with learning disabilities. These, and a number of recent high profile criminal cases, appeared to confirm that adults with learning disabilities are particularly vulnerable to breaches of their human rights (paragraphs 16-29).
The Committee's inquiry received evidence principally from witnesses in England, and so focuses on the policy framework in the 2001 Government White Paper Valuing People. This is based on rights, independence, choice, inclusion and a programme of change, but progress has slowed and there is a gap between the Government's policy and the experiences of people in their daily lives. The Committee expects the Government to give the recommendations in this Report serious consideration when it redrafts the current consultation document Valuing People Now. It recommends that Valuing People Now should promote a "human rights based approach" and provide practical guidance to public authorities on how human rights principles can be used to secure better treatment(paragraphs 30-43).
The evidence seen by the Committee shows it is still necessary to emphasise that adults with learning disabilities have the same human rights as everyone else. It recommends action to promote awareness and a positive approach to the rights of adults with learning disabilities under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (as amended) and the Human Rights Act 1998. The Committee recommends that the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Government should take steps to help adults with learning disabilities understand what these provisions mean for them. The Committee welcomes the decision of the Government to sign the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which presents a valuable opportunity to confirm that people with disabilities, and particularly adults with learning disabilities, are entitled to full respect for their human rights. The Committee recommends the Government should ratify this Convention, and its Optional Protocol, without delay (paragraphs 44-77).
Evidence to the Committee suggests that adults with learning difficulties are more liable to social exclusion, poverty and isolation, and that efforts to improve their lives have had little impact on some. The evidence suggests that public authorities, including local authorities and PCTs, are not fully committed to the implementation of the Government's policy in Valuing People and that limited resources are undermining attempts to implement the aims of that policy effectively. The Committee recommends the introduction of a positive duty on public authorities to promote respect for human rights. Taking a positive and proactive approach to the creation of a culture of human rights will encourage a move away from negative attitudes and stereotypes which have "dehumanised" adults with learning disabilities in the past (paragraphs 78-134).
The Committee is concerned that adults with learning disabilities in health and residential settings suffer neglect, abuse, discrimination and indifference. Although the Committee welcomes the announcement by the Department of Health of an independent inquiry into the healthcare of adults with learning disabilities, it considers that the Department of Health could do much more to promote culture change and a human rights-led approach (paragraphs 135-158).
Evidence to the Committee suggests that children of people with learning disabilities are more likely to be removed from the care of their parents. These removals, unless justified and proportionate to a risk to the child, may lead to a serious risk of a breach of the rights of the child and its parents to respect for their private and family lives, as guaranteed by Article 8 ECHR. The Committee recommends proactive and positive action by the Department of Health (paragraphs 159-181).
Witnesses raised significant concerns about the human rights of people with learning difficulties in the criminal justice system. Evidence suggests that people with learning disabilities are very concerned about crime, including hate crimes against people with learning disability. Witnesses told the Committee that people with learning disabilities are not taken seriously and lack confidence in and understanding of the criminal justice system. Witnesses told us that adults with learning disabilities may sometimes serve longer custodial sentences than others convicted of comparable crimes (paragraphs 182-217).
In the Committee's view, more should be done to reduce barriers to the enjoyment of ordinary life by people with learning difficulties including through the production of more accessible information and independent advocacy, as well as by measures in relation to areas such as voting, communications equipment and support services. It recommends legislation to ensure that all providers of health and social care are considered public authorities for the purpose of the Human Rights Act and are subject to the duty to comply with Convention rights (paragraphs 218-292).
The Committee's recommendations in this report are based on its view that stronger leadership is urgently needed to create a more positive culture of respect for human rights in the United Kingdom. It calls for practical steps to be taken to promote the rights of adults with learning difficulties in mainstream public services. It considers that the Department of Health and the Office for Disability Issues should work closely together, including to ensure effective cross Government work to place the aims of Valuing People in the mainstream and to ensure respect for the human rights of adults with learning disabilities. It encourages the Equality and Human Rights Commission to ensure that the voices and views of adults with learning difficulties play a central role in its work (paragraphs 293-303).
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