No plans were made to provide sign language interpreter for mini-budget reversal statement, Treasury confirms

There were no plans to interpret Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s October statement into British Sign Language (BSL), the Treasury has revealed.

The address on 17 October – which saw Mr Hunt reverse “almost all” of the policies from Liz Truss’ dramatic mini-budget – was broadcast without BSL on the department’s social media channels, or on the BBC News Channel.

While the UK Government failed to provide a BSL interpreter for the five-minute statement, one was available on ParliamentLive.TV for Mr Hunt’s statement to the Commons and the subsequent debate.

In both statements, the chancellor announced that the basic rate of income tax would remain at 20%, while the government’s Energy Price Guarantee to support energy bills and the cost of living would end in April next year.

In his filmed address to the public, Mr Hunt said: “We will reverse almost all the tax measures announced in the growth plan three weeks ago that have not started parliamentary legislation.

“So whilst we will continue with the abolition of the health and social care levy and stamp duty changes, we will no longer be proceeding with the cuts to dividend tax rates; the reversal of off-payroll working reforms introduced in 2017 and 2021; the new VAT-free shopping scheme for non-UK visitors; or the freeze on alcohol duty rates.”

The chancellor added the measures he announced would raise £32 billion a year, in a bid to calm markets after the pound crashed in value under his predecessor, Kwasi Kwarteng.

A week after the statement, The Limping Chicken submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Treasury, asking for “all email and written correspondence” from staff referring to “the decision not to provide in-person and/or on-screen British Sign Language (BSL) interpretation” for the chancellor’s recorded address.

“This should include any correspondence considering whether BSL interpretation should or could be provided, even though the decision was later made not to provide this service,” the request read.

However, on Monday, the Treasury responded and said: “Following a search of our records, we can confirm that HM Treasury does not hold information within the scope of your request.”

It is not the first FOI to expose the UK Government’s lack of planning for BSL access to speeches and press conferences, after The Limping Chicken revealed in 2020 that Downing Street did not carry out an equalities impact assessment for its daily coronavirus briefings.

This was despite the government’s legal team telling a lawyer representing Deaf campaigners that such a document existed but it would be “disproportionate” to release it to them.

A year later, the UK Government was found to have broken the Equality Act on two occasions, when two coronavirus data briefings came with no BSL interpretation whatsoever.

A separate court case is still underway as to whether more than 270 Deaf people should receive compensation for nine Covid briefings at the start of the pandemic which also came without BSL interpretation.

The next hearing for the case is due to take place next month.

Commenting on the Treasury having made no plans for BSL access to Mr Hunt’s initial statement, Where Is The Interpreter founder Lynn Stewart-Taylor said: “The Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt announced some changes to the mini budget – for British Sign Language citizens, communication is being lost in no translation.

“Some deaf people are relying on family members for information, but others are just sitting there unable to comprehend what is happening.

“I’m very angry and very upset because we deaf people are having to take on our own fight, and it’s absolutely exhausting.”

Referencing the Cabinet Office being found to have breached equality law last year, she concluded by saying the Government has “not improved” and that “they still fail us again and again”.

Solicitor Chris Fry, who represents the 276 Deaf campaigners in the ongoing lawsuit, added: “This shows a blatant disregard for making sure that it’s information is accessible. It also shows disrespect to the Courts who declared the Cabinet Office to have discriminated against deaf people who use BSL during the pandemic.

“We’re all worried about the fast-paced and changing economic circumstances at the moment and how they are affecting our everyday lives. If an announcement is important enough to be broadcast live, it should be easy enough to have an interpreter on-platform to ensure that the messages are properly received by everyone.”

HM Treasury did not respond to multiple requests from The Limping Chicken for comment.

Photo: HM Treasury/YouTube.

By Liam O’Dell. Liam is a mildly deaf freelance journalist and campaigner from Bedfordshire. He wears bilateral hearing aids and can be found talking about disability, theatre, politics and more on Twitter and on his website.