Inclusion Scotland has said government advice in the event of no agreement being reached with the European Union has not heard views of the disabled
Disabled people's voices and concerns are not being heard as the government prepares for a no-deal Brexit, a charity has said.
Westminster has began publishing technical notices which set out the consequences of leaving the European Union without a deal.
The first of the documents - which aim to inform citizens and businesses on coping with a no-deal scenario - were released by the Department for Exiting the European Union today (Thursday 23 August). However Inclusion Scotland has said that those with disabilities have been ignored.
The charity said that despite the very significant implications of a no-deal Brexit for the one in fivepeople in Scotland who are disabled, there appears to be no mention of equality and human rights in the list of notices due to be published, or the potential implications to social care of leaving the EU
The first batch of technical notices will cover areas including financial services, nuclear safeguards, farming and organic food production but there is no consideration of human rights, the implications to social care, accessibility, or other issues of real concern to disabled people in Scotland if we leave the EU without a deal.
Inclusion Scotland policy officer Susie Fitton said: "A no-deal Brexit would impact on a wide range of rights, current legal protections and social support systems for disabled people in Scotland that affect their everyday lives – human rights, discrimination, healthcare and access to medicines, social care and social security, and access to funding for their organisations. That these issues are not being addressed by these technical notices is just the latest example of how our rights and concerns have been ommitted from the UK Government’s prepartions and planning for Brexit.
“If the intention of these technical notices is to reassure people across the UK, where is the reassurance for disabled people that their rights, services and support systems will be protected if we leave the EU without a deal?“
Fitton said that politicians must take action to ensure that the disabled are not forgotten, and that their rights are not removed.
She added: “We need concrete commitments from both the UK and Scottish Governments that they will work to ensure that health and social care will not face an unprecedented staffing crisis as we leave the EU, that the rights we have as disabled people which originate from EU law, keep up with future progressive changes made by the EU, and that they are not diminished, ‘frozen in time’ or indeed withdrawn altogether and that the opportunity will be taken by both governments to enhance disabled people’s rights and the systems that support these rights post-Brexit. In short in the clamour of voices over Brexit we need disabled people’s voices to be heard.”
