Colleagues may be interested to see the following PQ's on disability
particularly in relation to Scotland.

> Disabled People
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive what plans it has for a formal consultation strategy, across all
> departments, with the Disability Rights Commission.
> (S1W-5652)
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive what plans it has to meet the Disability Rights Commission.
> (S1W-5653)
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive how many meetings it has had since July 1999 with the National
> Disability Council.
> (S1W-5654)
> Jackie Baillie: There has been regular contact between the Scottish
> Executive and the National Disability Council (NDC) since July 1999. We
> look forward to working with the new GB-wide Disability Rights Commission
> (DRC) which will formally replace the NDC on 25 April 2000.
> I met with Bert Massie, Chair of the DRC, and with DRC officials when they
> were in Edinburgh recently to give evidence to the Parliament's Equal
> Opportunities Committee. We look to develop a close working relationship,
> across the work of the Executive and more widely, with the DRC and in
> particular with the Commissioner with special knowledge for Scotland and
> the Director for Scotland.
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive what plans it has for an information campaign to raise public,
> commercial and industry awareness of Part III of the Disability
> Discrimination Act 1995.
> (S1W-5655)
> Jackie Baillie: The Executive is currently considering the matter of
> awareness raising for Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA)
> 1995. That consideration will be informed by discussion with the
> Department for Education and Employment and the new Disability Rights
> Commission (DRC). One of the functions of the DRC will be to promote
> equality of opportunity for disabled people including raising awareness of
> the requirements of the DDA.
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive what progress has been made in implementing the 156
> recommendations from the Disability Rights Task Force which were published
> in its report From Exclusion to Inclusion in December 1999.
> (S1W-5656)
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive which department has responsibility for considering the
> recommendations made by the Disability Rights Task Force in its report
> From Exclusion to Inclusion published in December 1999.
> (S1W-5657)
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive how many of the 156 recommendations made by the Disability
> Rights Task Force in its report From Exclusion to Inclusion in December
> 1999 fall within the powers of the Executive.
> (S1W-5658)
> Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish
> Executive how many of the recommendations of the Disability Rights Task
> Force in its report From Exclusion to Inclusion in December 1999 can be
> implemented without legislation.
> (S1W-5659)
> Jackie Baillie: The UK Government has already announced its intention to
> legislate to implement the Task Force's recommendations on education. A
> consultation paper on the measures to be included in the legislation was
> issued by the Department for Education and Employment on 17 March.
> The Executive intends to publish its response to the Disability Rights
> Task Force report in the summer. To inform the ongoing cross-Departmental
> consideration of the recommendations the Executive will shortly be
> inviting comments from a broad range of organisations based in Scotland on
> how to take forward the recommendations in devolved areas.
> A number of the recommendations are specifically directed at the
> Disability Rights Commission (DRC). The Executive will look to work
> closely with the new Commission, as they take forward consideration of
> those aspects of the report, to ensure that account is taken of Scottish
> circumstances.
> Decisions on whether to proceed in Scotland by way of legislation or
> otherwise would take account of the responses to the consultation as well
> as consideration of the package proposed by the UK Government and the DRC.
> Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive
> what discussions it has had with Her Majesty's Government (HMG) about
> HMG's proposal to introduce a bill to provide protection against
> discrimination of disabled people in schools and in further and higher
> education.
> (S1W-5687)
> Mr Sam Galbraith: The Executive is working closely with the UK Government
> to ensure that planned legislation to implement the education
> recommendations of the Disability Rights Task Force report will fully
> address the needs of disabled pupils and students in Scotland.
> Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive
> what implications the new bill to provide protection against the
> discrimination of disabled people in schools and in further and higher
> education proposed by Her Majesty's Government will have on the current
> Standards in Scotland's Schools etc. Bill.
> (S1W-5688)
> Mr Sam Galbraith: A consultation is underway seeking views on how the
> education recommendations of the Disability Rights Task Force should be
> taken forward in a UK Bill. With one exception, the measures proposed to
> be included within the UK Government's Special Educational Needs and
> Disability Rights in Education Bill, as they relate to Scotland, are
> reserved.
> 


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