4,000 set to benefit from new disability policy

MORE than 4,000 disabled islanders are set to benefit from a long-awaited plan to improve their quality of life.

The Disability and Inclusion Strategy will be debated by the States next month and, if approved, it will see improved information for disabled people and their carers, the development of legislation for the prevention of discrimination and an extension to Guernsey of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.

The phased implementation will come at an initial cost of about £170,000. Annual costs would then be at least £52,000.

But departments involved have warned that there could be unidentified expenses, with Commerce and Employment speculating that two or three times the suggested start up costs could be needed.

The department has also criticised the report for a lack of detail and the ramifications of the proposals on local business.

But the Guernsey Disability Alliance described the strategy as the 'first step on the long road' to making sure everyone in Guernsey had the opportunity to be fully included in local life. 'We very much welcome the publication of the island's first ever Disability and Inclusion Strategy,' said chairwoman Shelaine Green.