Human rights body threatens action against councils over disability harassment

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is to conduct a formal inquiry into disability-related harassment that will focus in particular on how public authorities are protecting disabled people from violence and abuse.

Where evidence is uncovered of people not being protected, the EHRC plans to use its legal powers to take action against councils and other public authorities in a bid to force them to comply with their obligations.

These obligations derive from the Disability Equality Duty set out in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, the Human Rights Act, and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The commission said it already had evidence that targeted violence or hostility to disabled people is widespread in Britain. A report in 2008 found that disabled people are four times more likely to be the victim of a crime than other people and are twice as likely to be the victim of a violent attack.

Mike Smith, Commissioner for the EHRC, said: “The recent inquest into the tragic deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca show that early intervention and preventative action are essential, and that public authorities have to work in partnership to tackle this problem effectively.

“Disabled people experiencing harassment can become conditioned to hostile treatment, or are sometimes told to ignore it by those around them – including by public authorities. Individual incidents can also have a much wider ‘ripple effect’, as other disabled people become aware that targeted violence and hostility is happening in their community may then fear for their own safety.”

The inquiry team will be asked to look at the steps taken by public authorities to eliminate disability-related harassment and to address its causes, including prejudice and negative attitudes, and how public authorities have ensured the involvement of disabled people in eliminating harassment and its causes – for example by effective joined-up reporting procedures. It will also be tasked with identifying examples of good practice.

The EHRC will shortly publish draft terms of reference, which will then be put out to consultation. Final terms of reference will be published before the inquiry begins in early 2010. The inquiry will then report its findings within one year.