Deaf News: Disabled candidate election fund restored… for one year

• Disabled would-be MPs have forced the government to restore a disabled candidate election fund, but the Fund will only run for one year.

• They call on political parties to urgently adopt All-Disabled Shortlists (lawful under the 2010 Equality Act) in target seats so that disabled candidates can make as much progress as possible in the next 12 months. They also vow to continue their fight for the long-term future of the Fund.

• The Access to Elected Office Fund will be restored, up to £250,000, for the next year. The Government will also launch a 12-month programme of work with all political parties to identify how they can best support disabled candidates and how independent candidates can be supported too.

• The Access to Elected Office Fund ran from 2012-2015 but was frozen and put under ‘review’. The Fund sought to create a level playing field for deaf and disabled people to stand for election, for any party, at any level, given the inevitable additional costs faced by such candidates.

• The Government’s announcement was in response to a pre-action protocol letter sent by Bindmans LLP on behalf of the claimants.

• The pre-action letter was sent on behalf of three parliamentary candidates from three political parties and was supported by cross-party campaign group More United.

• The campaign had generated significant support from MPs from four parties, prominent disabled figures, and the public with a 10,000-strong petition being delivered to No 10 Downing Street.

Following correspondence in respect of a potential legal challenge supported by More United, Women and Equalities Minister Penny Mordaunt has announced that the Access to Elected Office Fund will be restored, up to £250,000, for the next year.

At the same time, the Government will launch a 12-month programme of work with all political parties to identify how they can best support disabled candidates and how independent candidates can be supported to.

The challenge was brought by three would-be MPs and was supported by the cross-party campaign group More United. The three candidates are from three different parties who have been effectively barred from standing – either in ‘winnable’ seats or altogether – since the Fund was frozen in 2015. All of them hope to stand for election in a future General Election.  

In September 2015, in its submission to the UN Special Rapporteur’s Inquiry into the rights of disabled people to participate in decision-making, the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC) identified “five key actions to smooth the pathway to politics for the disabled”, including: “The UK Government should reopen the AEO Fund in England, and work with the Scottish and Welsh Governments to explore options for making the scheme, or similar funds, available across Great Britain.”

David Buxton who stood for Parliament in 1997 and 2001 as Britain’s first ever Deaf BSL using candidate in history, and also as a Borough Council candidate for the Liberal Democrats in 2015, and was on the Liberal Democrats Leadership Programme, said: “The restoration of the Fund for one year is so important as major parties are already engaged in selecting candidates for target seats ahead of the next General Election. The primary purpose of the Fund is to allow disabled candidates to compete in elections on a level playing field, but we also want to see disabled candidates getting elected too. Now that the Fund is available for at least the next 12 months, we are calling on all political parties to use All-Disabled Shortlists in some target seats and to tackle other barriers that disabled candidates face”.

Emily Brothers who is blind and stood for Labour in Sutton and Cheam at the 2015 General Election, said: “The restoration of the Fund is great news but we will continue our fight to ensure its long-term future. I hope that all political parties will engage in the 12-month programme of work to tackle barriers facing disabled candidates and through that process, recognise that the right of disabled candidates to participate in elections at all levels can only be guaranteed whilst a central government fund exists to support disabled candidates with the additional costs they incur.”

Simeon Hart who stood for the Green Party in Oldham West and Royton in the 2015 General Election and 2015 by-election, said: “The public support for our campaign has been fantastic. MPs from major parties, and some of Britain’s most prominent disabled public figures have all sent a clear message to the Government that the Fund must be restored to create a level playing field. We’re determined to keep up the pressure in the coming months in order to secure a long-term solution.”

Jamie Potter from Bindmans Solicitors, who are acting for the claimants said: “It should not have taken the threat of legal action to secure the reopening of the fund. While the continuation of the fund is welcome, we do not yet know on what terms it will operate and it is concerning that the Fund has only been restored for one year. Bindmans will continue to support these and other candidates in future should the terms on which the Fund operates not be appropriate or if the Fund is threatened with closure in the future.”

Bess Mayhew, CEO of More United said: “Our 100,000+ supporters believe in equality of opportunity and greater democratic engagement. Restoring the Access to Elected Office Fund, even for one-year, is a major win for those who want to make politics more diverse and open to all, so I urge people to join our movement and help us continue our campaign.”