Disability employment gap inquiry launched

The Work and Pensions Committee launches an inquiry into the Government's commitment to halve the "disability employment gap" - the difference in employment rates between disabled and non-disabled people.

Deadline for written submissions is Monday 9 May 2016.

Find out more on the Parliament website

Disability Rights UK will be responding to this call for evidence on the ability of current Government welfare reform policy to deliver on their manifesto commitment to halve the disability employment gap and move around 1.2 million disabled people into work by 2020.

This manifesto commitment was reiterated by the new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Stephen Crabb MP on his first day in post on Monday March 20^th.

The Select Committee's terms of reference do permit us to raise issues other than welfare reform and we would be particularly interested in hearing the views of our members and those accessing our website/social media on what additional measures will be required e.g. macro economic interventions, job creation, employment retention, etc.

Please can you email your views to us by April 26^th to Philip.Connolly@disabilityrightsuk.org and mark the email subject box with the words "W and P inquiry".

Points to be addressed by the Work and Pensions Committee

Steps required to halve the disability employment gap

• To what extent are the current range of proposed measures likely to achieve the Government's ambition of closing the disability employment gap?
• Should the Government set interim targets along the way to meet the commitment to halve the disability employment gap? What should they be?

Support for employers

• How effective is the Disability Confident campaign in reducing barriers to employment and educating employers?
• What more could be done to support employers?

Effective employment support for disabled people

• What should support for people with health conditions and disabilities in the proposed Work and Health programme look like?
• How should providers be incentivised to succeed?

Likely effects of proposed ESA reform

• What are the likely impacts on disability employment of the abolition of the Employment and Support Allowance Work Related Activity component?
• What evidence is there that it will promote positive behavioural change? What evidence is there that it will have unintended consequences, and how could these be mitigated?

- See more at: www.disabilityrightsuk.org/news/2016/april/disability-employment-gap-inquiry-launched