ARCHIVE: About the Secretary of State report on disability equality

The Disability Equality Duty (DED) came into force in December 2006. The DED requires public bodies to carry out their functions with due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination and promote equality of opportunity for disabled people.  It means that public bodies must consider the needs of all sectors of the society they serve, and how they make sure they are delivering services, and carrying out functions, in a way that promotes greater equality for disabled people

Regulations also place a specific duty on key Secretaries of State, to publish a report that:

  • gives an overview of progress made by the public authorities operating in the relevant policy sector towards equality of opportunity between disabled people and other people; and
  • sets out the proposals for the co-ordination of action by public authorities operating in that sector so as to bring about further progress towards equality of opportunity between disabled people and other people.

The first report must be published by 1 December 2008, and subsequent reports must be published at three yearly intervals. 

The purpose of these reports is to prompt strategic leadership on disability equality across key elements of the broad public sector.  They consider:

  • the progress of a broad range of public authorities, including other government departments where responsibilities are shared
  • identification of gaps in provision or particular trends or barriers
  • opportunities for public authorities to work more effectively in partnership to deliver effective services 

Publication of this report comes at a time when the Government has further demonstrated its commitment to improve the lives of disabled people through its intention to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People. This Convention aims to secure the same human rights for the estimated 650 million disabled people across the world that non-disabled people have - and on an equal basis with them.

The principles on which the Convention is based underpin the UK approach to disability equality, and the Disability Equality Duty is an important part of the process through which we will know that we are achieving success.

Page last modified: 1 December 2008
Page published: 1 December 2008