Minutes of Main Committee Meeting:
3 December 2003
Chairman:
Neil Betteridge
DPTAC Members:
Sian Baldwin
Ann Bates
Vidur Dindayal
Jean Dunlop
David Finnegan
Julie Giles
Roger Hewitt
Grahame Lawson
Jenny Meadows
Keith Richards
Laura Smales
Richard West
Observers:
Ann Frye - Department for Transport Mobility & Inclusion Unit
Sue Sharp - Department for Transport Mobility & Inclusion Unit
William Bee - Disability Rights Commission
Louca-Mai Wilson - Disability Rights Commission
Greg Dempster - Secretary of Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland
Ann Lyon - Scottish Executive
David Petherick - Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Building Regulations Division
In Attendance:
Andy Kirby - Secretary
Sandra Duncan - Secretariat
Ffion Grant - Secretariat
Gary Kemp - Secretariat
Harriet Samuels - Secretariat
Verona Wiltshire - Secretariat
Mark Wadsworth - Interpreter
Grace Bannan - Interpreter
Agenda item 1: Welcome, introductions and apologies of absence
1. Neil Betteridge welcomed DPTAC members, observers and guest speakers to the meeting. He thanked the Secretariat for arranging the Christmas meal the previous evening at the City Inn, and members for attending.
2. Apologies had been received from Pravinkant Amin, Peter Barker, Josie Clairmont, Roy Hayter, Tom Pey, Dave Pugh, Carol Thomas and Kate Smyth.
Agenda item 2: Minutes of the last meeting (1 October 2003)
3. One alteration was made to the minutes. Paragraph 47 was amended to begin: 'Carol Thomas, at the request of the Disability Rights Commission's transport stakeholders forum, asked DPTAC to consider taking forward in its work plan for 2004...'.
Action Point 1: Secretariat to arrange for minutes of the October 2003 previous meeting to be placed on the DPTAC website.
Agenda item 3: Matters arising (paper 01-M6-03)
4. The Chair advised members were advised of particular issues within the matters arising paper at 01-M6-03.
5. Most outstanding items were tabled as part of the substantive agenda.
Communications Allowance
6. The Secretariat reported that the communications allowance was designed as a contribution to, rather than cover for, members' costs associated with internet connection. The Secretariat plan to provide members with training on e-DPTAC, which should help reduce members' costs.
7. Some members asked for training to help them improve their internet and other computer skills.
Action Point 2: Secretariat to arrange e-DPTAC training for all members and training on computer skills for members requesting it.
Concordat with the Disability Rights Commission (DRC)
8. Members were invited to approve the draft concordat with the DRC.
9. Members welcomed the draft, which would clarify and strengthen the relationship between the DRC and DPTAC. DPTAC agreed that the Concordat should be reviewed annually to ensure that it reflected workload and activities in an up-to-date way.
Action Point 3: Neil Betteridge to sign the Concordat with the DRC.
Action Point 4: Secretariat to ensure the Concordat is reviewed annually.
Future Inclusive
10. Neil Betteridge reminded members wishing to attend the parliamentary launch of Future Inclusive at Portcullis House on the 10th December to notify the Secretariat. This important DPTAC event would launch an award for undergraduate students and lecturers demonstrating a clear appreciation of inclusive environments in their studies.
Action Point 5: Members to notify Secretariat if they wish to attend the launch of Future Inclusive.
Agenda item 4: Progress on work programme 02- M6-03
11. Members considered the paper 02-M6-03 reporting progress on the work programme. Neil Betteridge updated the meeting on recent developments.
12. Will Bee and Louca- Mai- Wilson were invited to explain what the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) was doing to measure improvements in access for disabled people and how the literature review was progressing.
13. Will explained that DRC's survey of disabled people's attitudes has shown very little movement even in areas that have seen improvements in accessibility. DRC would commission research to examine disabled people's perceptions and attitudes over a ten-year period. Local access groups would be used. Members discussed the regional scope of DRC's work and its engagement with black and other minority ethnic groups.
14. Louca-Mai introduced her summary paper on the DRC literature review (11-M6-03, previously circulated to members). She explained that the paper provided an overview of disability, particularly in areas relating to DRC's objectives, and had provided the Secretariat with the complete paper.
15. Louca-Mai agreed to a further meeting with Ann Frye, Mobility and Inclusion Unit (MIU), to ensure that the report did justice to the full range of research that MIU had carried out and was aware of.
Action Point 6: Secretariat to circulate Louca-Mai Wilson's full paper with the minutes.
Agenda item 5: Mobility and Inclusion Unit Report 03-M6-03
16. Before introducing the report, Sue Sharp presented Neil Betteridge with a copy of the draft disability bill published that day for pre-legislative scrutiny. She said the bill would clarify the terms by which transport could be exempted from Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act. The bill would also allow ministers to lift exemptions through regulation.
17. Neil paid credit to the Disability Rights Taskforce's work in developing the recommendations which led to this Bill, and said publication of the draft was an important step on the road towards achieving accessible transport.
18. Sue then went through the key points of the Mobility and Inclusion Unit Report for the benefit of members.
Action Point 7: Secretariat to circulate draft disability discrimination bill to Members, with briefing note, for initial comment, and then develop a draft response.
Agenda item 6: Any other business
19. Neil Betteridge invited volunteers to take the lead in liasing with the Centre for Accessible Environments on a project they are doing on the design and ergonomics of accessible transport ticket machines.
20. Neil advised members the register of interests should be completed and made available on request rather published on the website.
21. Neil reminded members that, along with the DRC and Leonard Cheshire Foundation, DPTAC had been invited to give evidence to the House of Commons Select Committee on Transport on 19 November. The BBC had broadcast the hearing on their Parliamentary Channel.
22. Neil thought the afternoon had been a good experience and that DPTAC had presented its case well. The transcript will be published on the House of Commons website in the Spring new year, probably with a short report from the Committee.
Action Point 8: Ann Bates to take forward the work on ticket machines.
Action Point 9: Secretariat to remind Members to complete their register of interests.
Action Point 10: Secretariat to obtain a video of the Transport Select Committee hearing.
Agenda item 7: Meeting with the Secretary of State 06-M6-03
23. Neil Betteridge described the meeting with the Secretary of State on 15 October as being very constructive. They worked through an extensive agenda. The Secretary of State asked DPTAC to advise on two or three key areas in the Ten Year Plan that are achievable and important for the disabled community.
24. The Secretary of State also asked DPTAC for suggestions as to how best to gear up local authorities for the forthcoming Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) deadlines relating to transport and the built environment. Members agreed that these requests were an important opportunity to influence policy and there should be replies from the Chair.
Action Point 11: Sian Baldwin to lead, with Secretariat support, on drafting a note for the Chair to send to the Secretary of State on the most important issues that the Ten Year Plan review should consider.
Action Point 12: Grahame Lawson to lead, with Secretariat support, on drafting a note for the Chair to send to the Secretary of State advising him how best to prepare local authorities for implementing the DDA.
Agenda item 8: Future Research for 2004/05 paper 08-M6-03
25. Paper 08-M6 had previously been circulated for information. Neil explained that the Secretariat had written to members nominating ideas that had not been shortlisted, explaining why their research bids were unsuccessful. Successful bids would be worked up by the Secretariat, with the assistance of Working Groups when needed, and submitted to Ministers as part of a wider MIU programme.
Agenda item 9: Candidates for 2004 Work Plan paper 04-M5-03
26. Neil advised members the work plan was still a draft because not all the working groups had been able to meet to discuss priorities. Nevertheless the plan was already ambitious. He reminded members of the criteria for new tasks in the Member's Handbook, which are:
- Is it an area in which DPTAC itself adds significant value; and on which DPTAC is skilled to respond and follow through?
- Does it have potential to make a significant difference in achieving DPTAC's overall aims in both the short and long terms?
- Is it an area in which it is natural and appropriate for DPTAC to take the lead?
- Are members and Secretariat resources sufficient?
27. David Finnegan recommended looking at the impact scooters have on public transport.
28. Ann Frye said to help the Rail Working Group she would provide DPTAC members with a copy of the MIU's survey on the attitudes of disabled railway card holders.
29. Neil asked members to forward their suggested work programme to the Secretariat by the Christmas break.
30. There was a recommendation for DPTAC to have at least one main meeting a year outside London. Ideally DPTAC should meet with local disability groups/individuals.
31. David Petherick, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, said it was unlikely his unit would continue monitoring Part M using best value indicators. ODPM and DPTAC would need to consider best way forward.
32. Will Bee invited DPTAC to sit on DRC's scoping study looking at the Department of Work and Pensions' draft disability bill.
33. As part of a discussion of DPTAC's research, Ann Frye advised members that the Mobility and Inclusion Unit was bidding for funds for research to investigate the impact of transport on people with mental health problems. DPTAC would be kept aware of how this research progressed.
Action Point 13: Secretariat to circulate MIU survey of older and disabled railcard users with the minutes of the meeting.
Action Point 14: Members to feed any further ideas on the work plan to the Secretariat by 2 January.
Agenda item 10: Annual Report paper 04-M5-03
34. Members were appreciative of the first draft of the annual report. However there was scope for further improvement. DPTAC should consider using interesting graphics to illustrate the report. Information provided on the working groups should be expanded. The Chair offered the services of Arthritis Care's small publications team, at no cost to DPTAC, to develop ideas for the presentation of the report, which would be published as usual through the Secretariat. This process might include consideration of a formal report and a less full but more readable Impact Report for external stakeholders.
Action Point 15: Secretariat and Chair to develop the draft Annual Report.
Date of next Main Committee meeting: 4 February 2004.
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