The Scottish Parliament this week paved the way for new legislation that will help disabled people who are currently unable to get in or out of their houses or use common facilities such as gardens or parking.
On Tuesday (12th January 2010), a legislative consent motion was passed granting Scottish Ministers the power to give additional rights to disabled people who need to adapt commonly owned parts of a property.
At present, if a disabled person in Scotland needs to make adaptations to the commonly owned part of the property in which they live, in most cases they must get the unanimous consent of all owners. Such adaptations could include someone wishing to install a ramp to the main door of a flatted development or someone who wishes simply to put additional handrails in a commonly owned stairway.
Gaining unanimous consent for such works from all owners is notoriously difficult. Owners may not occupy their property and be hard to trace, may wrongly believe they will have to contribute towards the cost of the adaptation or can simply be disinterested in helping.
The agreement of the Scottish Parliament was required in order that the additional powers for Scottish Ministers could be included in the Equality Bill currently making its way through the Westminster Parliament. In December Capability Scotland gave evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Equal Opportunities Commission giving strong support to the proposals
Capability’s Senior Policy Advisor, Susie Fitton, commented: “Disabled people should have the right to make the simple adaptations that are required to enable them to get in and out of their homes and make full use of communal amenities.
"The inclusion of these powers in the Equality Bill is a great step forward. What we need now is a commitment from the Scottish Government to introduce the relevant legislation as soon as soon as the Bill is passed.”
The Equality Bill is currently at the committee stage being considered by the House of Lords.