DR UK criticises COP26 access ‘confusion’

Mon,1 November 2021
News Equality & Rights

Israeli Minister and wheelchair user Karine Elharrar was unable to access the COP26 climate change conference currently being hosted by the UK government in Glasgow. She was forced to return to her hotel 50 miles away after waiting outside for two hours. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has apologised for the "confusion".

A second Disabled person who uses a crutch was forced to wait in line without a reasonable adjustment being made for her inability to stand for a prolonged period of time, according to the BBC’s Today programme.

DR UK Kamran Mallick said: “There is no ‘confusion’. A lack of accessibility has nothing to do with ‘confusion’ and everything to do with a lack of the social model of disability being at the heart of government strategy to assure that not only can the  20% of the UK population be able to access everything they need to, but that international ambassadors are also afforded this most basic of human rights. 25 years after the Disability Discrimination Act and ten years after the Equality Act became law, the government is out of excuses. We need deeds, not words, when it comes to accessibility.” Read Kamran’s blog on disability and climate change here.