Warning over disability treaty

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Ministers want to insert more reservations to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) than the 43 states who have already ratified it put together. And campaigners have been "alienated" by ministers' failure to seek their views on whether the changes are necessary, the influential joint committee on human rights said in a report.

The UK was one of the first to sign up to the UNCRPD - which it helped formulate - but missed its target to ratify it by the end of 2008 - with this spring now being proposed as the aim.

Part of the delay is due to delays in drawing up a number of "reservations" - in areas such as immigration, the armed forces and education - which officials believe are needed for the UK to be able to ratify.

However, the Government has not released full details to Parliament or discussed them widely with charities and campaign groups - drawing the fire of the committee.

"Progress towards ratification of the Convention by the UK has so far lacked transparency and has unfortunately alienated disabled people and their organisations," the committee concluded.

"This is unacceptable in the light of the clear Convention commitment which the Government intends to make to the involvement of disabled people in the development of policies and laws which affect them. This approach undermines the previous role that the UK Government has played in championing equality for disabled people and their leading role in negotiating the terms of the UNCRPD."

Proposed reservations should be published in full "without delay to allow full consultation" on whether they were really necessary, the report urged.

Andrew Dismore, the Labour MP who chairs the committee, said: "The UK has led the field in pushing for the acceptance of this convention and advocating the rights of people with disabilities to equal treatment.

"That is why we are particularly disappointed at the trouble we and disability organisations have had getting information about the large number of legal exceptions the Government wishes to make to this convention, and at the delays in ratifying it."