Stakeholder Response: The Stroke Association

The Stroke Association welcomes the government's decision to address the issue of smoking in public places, expected to be announced in the Queen's Speech tomorrow. The Stroke Association hopes that the introduction a bill to ban smoking in public places will be as far-reaching as possible to protect the public from passive smoking.

Joe Korner, director of communications for the Stroke Association, said: "It is vital that the government addresses this serious issue now. Every five minutes someone in England and Wales has a stroke. Around a quarter of all strokes are linked to smoking and passive smokers are nearly twice as likely to have a stroke than those who don't live or work in a smoky atmosphere.

"Whilst The Stroke Association welcomes the measures expected in the Queen's Speech tomorrow, as a member of the Smoking Control Network, we call for a complete ban in all enclosed public spaces including premises that do not serve food and membership clubs on top of the proposed ban on smoking in all enclosed public places and workplaces. Only this will ensure the protection of staff and members of the public that would otherwise be put at risk."

Stakeholder Response: Public Fundraising Retail Association (PRFA)

The re-appearance of the Charities Bill in the Queen’s Speech during the state opening of parliament was welcomed by the PFRA as a great step forward for the voluntary sector.

Speaking today about the re-introduction of the Bill Sue Brumpton, chief executive of the PFRA, said: “While the PFRA was pleased that the Bill wasn’t rushed through parliament before the general election we do feel that early stages of the Bill allowed for sufficient scrutiny to allow for fast tracking. What we hope to see now is the development of sensible legislation for fundraising along with comprehensive guidance notes for local authorities, regulators and other partners that will facilitate high quality fundraising while encouraging the public’s trust. We look forward to working closely with the Home office on finalising this guidance.”

"The PFRA lobbied hard for the Charities Bill and looks upon its development as vital to ensuring that the voluntary sector can continue to keep pace with a rapidly changing world and meet a wide range of expectations from the general public. The hope is that the work that has been undertaken during the past few years will mean that the Bill can now pass quickly through Parliament and become law, providing clear guidance to the sector and its partners and much needed reassurance for those that support good causes."

Stakeholder Response: Help the Aged

Reacting to the news that the government has revived the Equality Bill in the new parliamentary session, Paul Cann, director of policy at Help the Aged, said:

"The announcement of an Equality Bill in the Queen's Speech is particularly welcome because the creation of a single Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) is needed now more than ever.  Unlike other groups in society, older people still lack any government-backed body to stand up for their rights.  This is despite the fact that it is still legal for discrimination on the grounds of age to take place each and every day – whether it be in the fields of employment, healthcare or personal finance. 

"Help the Aged particularly welcomed the publication of the draft Bill in the last parliamentary term but was disappointed to see it being lost in the pre-election legislative wash-up. 

"We hope that the re-submitted Equality Bill will secure cross-party support so as to enshrine the rights which are taken for granted by so many but which currently do not extend to older people."

Stakeholder Response: IFAW

Phyllis Campbell-McRae, UK director of IFAW, stated: "We are delighted that the Queen’s Speech has brought us the Animal Welfare Bill, and the draft Marine Bill to help protect captive animals, and our marine wildlife.

"As is the case with all legislation, the devil is in the detail, and we will be lobbying for further action on issues like tail docking and mutilation, and the trade in exotic pets. We also believe that it is important to stress that nature conservation should be at the heart of Marine Protected Areas, to ensure that wildlife has proper protection beyond our coastline."

Stakeholder Response: The Woodland Trust

Ed Pomfret, senior public affairs officer for The Woodland Trust told ePolitix.com: “We are pleased to see the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill brought forward in this session as expected. This will provide important impetus in improving Government action on sustainability. The Common Land Bill will also help to protect some sites, however we are disappointed that the Queen’s Speech did not seek to change the continued sense that environment remains close to the bottom of the Government’s agenda by signalling a greater sense of urgency.

“There is a pressing need to address climate change which has been described by the government’s chief scientific advisor as a greater threat than international terrorism. Although it was confirmed in the speech that climate change will be a priority for the G8 presidency, action from the Government on this is still painfully slow. Forward looking government does mean action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but it also requires the development of strategies that enable nature to adapt and seeking to harness the wider social and economic benefits to society that adaptation offers. The Civil Aviation Bill provides a key opportunity for action to address the impact of aviation on the environment and we hope to see moves towards emissions charging included in this Bill.

Health and education remain high amongst the Government’s priorities but there is a growing awareness that these priorities are increasingly linked to environmental protection and enhancement. We would have liked to have seen the new Government address how accessible green spaces can promote public health and community development. Similarly, in assessing what we want from the countryside of the future, far closer attention needs to be paid to links with health policy.”

Stakeholder Response: Voice UK

A spokesperson for Voice UK told ePolitix.com: "We welcome the announcement of a ‘Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups’ Bill.

"People with learning disabilities are uniquely vulnerable to abuse, and more stringent measures must be taken to ensure that those working with them and caring for them are suitable to do so"

Stakeholder Response: Age Concern

Age Concern's Director-General, Gordon Lishman, commented on each of the bills relevant to his charity:

Equality Bill: "The government's renewed commitment to creating the Commission for Equality and Human Rights is a big-win for older people. For the first time ever, older people's rights will be recognised and we will have a real chance of beating ageism. New legislation to outlaw ageism in the workplace comes into force next year and the Commission must be up and running quickly so people have somewhere to turn to for advice.

"We also want to see a duty placed on public services to promote age equality. Older people are the biggest users of public services but they routinely suffer shoddy, second-class treatment simply because of their age."

Draft Pensions Bill: "The government has shied away from radical reform and merely tinkered with the existing system for too long. A complete overhaul of the pensions system is now absolutely critical if future generations are to avoid poverty in retirement.

"The government has some tough choices ahead but compulsory saving into a private scheme is not the way forward. If increased compulsion is necessary, the fairest way to achieve it would be through the state pension system.

"Raising the state pension age past 65 would be a huge betrayal for lower income groups and should not be considered as part of reform. The Government must steer clear of any funding options which penalise the poorest."

Incapacity Benefit Bill: "We support the aims of this Bill but the devil will be in the detail. Many older people want to get back into work but the system must be flexible enough to accommodate individual health needs and circumstances. Those who are unsuccessful in finding work should not be penalised - everyone should have access to a decent income."

Regulation of Financial Service Bill (equity release): "Many older people are 'asset rich cash poor' and increasing numbers are turning to equity release as a way of raising some extra cash. Legislation to regulate home reversion plans will offer much-needed protection to thousands of homeowners."

Stakeholder Response: Association for Charities

A spokesperson for the association said: "We are delighted that the Charities Bill has been brought back and look forward to seeing work begin on it again very soon. This is a Bill which needed a little more time to get right but once it is right it should be a great resource for the whole charity sector including the regulator, and a source of credit to the returning government."

Stakeholder Response: National Autistic Society

The National Autistic Society (NAS), the UK’s leading charity for people with autism, their families and carers, calls on Government to ensure that the 535,000 people affected by autism are remembered in the new Bills and Government plans announced by Her Majesty the Queen in her Speech to the House of Lords yesterday, 17th May 2005.

The NAS works closely with Government, parliamentarians and policy makers, to represent the needs and concerns of people with autism and their families.  Prior to the election the NAS, through a series of consultations, successfully lobbied Government to amend the School Transport Bill to protect the interests of children with disabilities and / or special educational needs (SEN) and it hopes that this work will be reflected in the new Education Bill. 

The NAS also helped to achieve positive recommendations for people with autism in the pre-legislative report by the parliamentary Joint Committee on the Draft Mental Health Bill, through providing oral evidence to the Joint Committee, and it is hoped that these steps will be will be built upon in ongoing debate on the Mental Health Bill that was announced yesterday.

The NAS welcomes the announcement of the Childcare Bill which would improve the provision of child care, placing a new duty on local authorities to provide affordable, flexible high quality child care places for all families with children up to the age of 14.  This must be inclusive of disabled children whose families need it most.  It will pose a huge challenge as approximately a third of children on waiting lists for short breaks have autism.  Key to its success will be the availability of training in autism and behaviour management for childcare providers. The NAS is keen to work with Government to make this Bill a reality. 

Government’s continued focus on anti-social behaviour needs to be checked with awareness of autism.  People with autism can sometimes display challenging as well as obsessive and ritualistic behaviour, which unfortunately can be interpreted as being anti-social.  The NAS is concerned that the Anti-Social Behaviour Act (2003) will lead to people with autism being criminalized for behaviour related to their disability.  The NAS has recently produced an Autism Alert card that those with the disability can carry to explain their condition and is raising awareness of autism amongst Criminal Justice System professionals throughout 2005, in order that this complex disability can be more widely understood. 

Proposals to accelerate the role out of City Academies are a cause for concern as the NAS believes that disabled children, including those with autism, and children with SEN have been overlooked in this flagship policy.  The NAS believes that City Academies may disadvantage children with autism because:

• Academies are state funded independent schools and do not have the same statutory duty to take children with statements of SEN as other mainstream schools
• Parental choice and consultation may be reduced as decisions over which, and how many, children with SEN an Academy will take is negotiated between the Academy and the LEA
• If a child is denied a place, the City Academy is not answerable to the SEN and Disability Tribunal in the same way as other publicly funded schools are  

Amanda Batten, NAS Policy and Campaigns Officer for Children, said: "City Academies are potentially highly problematic for families affected by autism.  The political focus on parental choice is meaningless if parents of children with autism are left out in the cold whilst LEAs and Academies decide between themselves which children with SEN an Academy will take.

"At present the process lacks both transparency and accountability and it is likely that other, less well funded, schools will be obliged to take increasing numbers of children with SEN, as the Academies are free to decide not to take them."

"It is crucial that government takes into account the needs and concerns of the 535,000 people who have autism in the UK today, and those of their families and carers. During the general election Campaign the NAS and TreeHouse, the national charity for autism education, launched the AutismCounts campaign  website www.autismcounts.org.uk to encourage voters to email their candidates about autism and ask them to sign the Autism Manifesto.