Requirements for a disability perspective in policy
This section outlines the requirements on government agencies to include a disability perspective in their business.
Requirements of government agencies
Government requires all its agencies to consider a disability perspective in the development of policy and services. This requirement has been expressed through three means:
Cabinet direction
In August 2001, Cabinet agreed that papers submitted to the Cabinet Social Development Committee, and other Cabinet committees as appropriate, should include a disability perspective (see Cabinet Minute: CAB Min (01) 27/7A).
The decision means that government agencies must explicitly consider what impact, if any, their proposals will have on disabled people and their families before putting a paper to Cabinet.
At the same time, the Government directed chief executives of Public Service departments to ensure their staff were familiar with the vision, objectives and actions in the New Zealand Disability Strategy.
When papers are being considered by Cabinet, the Minister for Disability Issues looks at the possible impact on disabled people and their families, and makes sure the Office for Disability Issues has been consulted.
When you are consulting on Cabinet papers, the Office for Disability Issues should be treated on the same basis as any interested department. It is useful to consider the Office for Disability Issues as a separate agency in this process, and to make this explicit in the list of agencies in the paper (as the ‘Office for Disability Issues’). This makes it obvious to Ministers, as well as other government agencies, that you have included the Office in the feedback process.
Departments may find it easier in the early scoping and development phase of policy to consider any possible impacts on disabled people and their families, rather than at the final stages of writing a paper.
The Office for Disability Issues can provide feedback on Cabinet papers, including whether there are any opportunities to promote inclusion and to eliminate barriers as experienced by disabled people.
This second-opinion advice includes looking at papers that are not directly about disabled people. This is because sometimes different solutions are needed to achieve the same results – to remove an existing barrier or to avoid inadvertently creating new ones.
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Legislation directing non-discrimination
Legislation, policy and services must not directly or inadvertently discriminate against disabled people by failing to consider their unique life experiences and needs.
All public functions and activities (such as policy development) need to comply with the Bill of Rights Act 1990. Section 19(1) affirms the right to be free from discrimination on the grounds set out in the Human Rights Act 1993. These grounds include disability.
Any person can complain about the activities of a government agency to the Human Rights Commission, under Part 1A of the Human Rights Act.
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New Zealand Disability Strategy
Government departments must develop annual work plans to show how they will implement the New Zealand Disability Strategy. They must also provide annual progress reports on these plans. Cabinet directed this in July 2001 to ensure a disability perspective is included in all appropriate policy and service development. (see Cabinet Minutes: EHC min (01) 8/4, CAB Min (01) 23/2 and CAB Min (01) 11/1C).
Reporting by government agencies on implementation of the New Zealand Disability Strategy contributes to an annual progress report presented by the Minister for Disability Issues to the House of Representatives. The Minister is responsible for developing the disability strategy and annual reporting on the strategy under the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000.
You can read the annual progress report and government agencies’ implementation plans on the Office for Disability Issues’ website.