On 24th February I had the pleasure of hosting a reception to mark the launch of Learning Disability Alliance – a new coalition of people and organisations committed to fighting for the rights of people with learning disabilities. I am delighted to see them come together and pool their strengths to ensure their views and voices are heard at every level, and I am determined to help them as they fight for the issues that matter most to people with learning disabilities.
The event saw the launch of an important new report ‘Quality Checking Government’, which was based on a survey conducted among 2,000 people with learning disabilities and their families. The results of the survey are a damning indictment of this Government’s policies – more than 80% of the respondents said since the last election their rights have been eroded, and 7 in 10 feel they are worse off as a result of cuts to disability benefits and the bedroom tax.
I am determined to reverse this deterioration in the quality of life of people with learning disabilities and I hope to work very closely with Learning Disability Alliance as we fight to achieve this goal.
