DISABILITY POVERTY IN THE UK

Early day motion 637, tabled 7 January 2008 by Roger Berry (Labour). Signed by 249 members.

That this House notes that the Leonard Cheshire Disability report Disability Poverty in the UK finds that disabled people are twice as likely as non-disabled people to live in poverty; further notes that disabled people can experience poverty in a number of ways including financial poverty, poverty of aspiration and poverty of opportunity; further notes that average basic living costs are much higher for disabled people; further notes that disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed and seeking work than non-disabled people and that disabled people who are not expected to work are often trapped in inescapable poverty; believes that the extent of disability poverty in the UK today is unacceptable; and calls on the Government to make tackling disability poverty a priority.

Signatures by party: Labour 113, Conservative 66, Liberal Democrat 50, Scottish National Party 7, DUP 4, Social Democratic and Labour Party 3, Independent 2, Plaid Cymru 2, Independent Labour 1, UUP 1.