Queens Speech Briefing 2022 – Top lines for blind and sight impaired people.

The Queen’s Speech, delivered by HRH The Prince of Wales, on 10 May 2022, sets out the priorities of the Government for the 2022/2023 Parliamentary year. It is delivered as part of the State Opening of Parliament.

Our friends over at Thomas Pocklington Trust have analysed the Queen’s Speech proposals to pick up key issues for blind and sight impaired people and sight loss organisations. They have published a top line summary of these key issues and, as more details of policies are released, Thomas Pocklington Trust will provide more briefings on specific policies. You can visit their website here.

Some key points:

  • Transport Bill: self-driving vehicles – the Government announced that it plans to introduce changes to the Highway Code to provide for self-driving cars on Britain’s roads. Self-driving and automated vehicles could provide a transformational experience for blind and partially sighted people and we will be campaigning to ensure that accessibility is built into new regulations. It will be important, too, that laws on self-driving vehicles put safety first and foremost and that includes protecting the needs of people with sensory impairments.
  • Schools Bill – The Government wants to ensure that funding is allocated on a fair and consistent basis for all schools wherever they are so all schools deliver better outcomes for their pupils. We will be pushing for this to include tackling the inequalities in the system for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) children and young people. Reform and investment in SEND services will be critical in helping to deliver better life chances for blind and partially sighted children and young people.
  • Media Bill – the Government will introduce a wide-ranging Bill on the media. As part of this, it has said it would work with Ofcom on legislative proposals to address the divergence in the provision of access services such as subtitles and audio descriptions between broadcast and on-demand services.
  • Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill – this will include giving councils the ability to make the pavement cafes which sprang up during the Covid-19 pandemic a permanent part of the town and city centre landscape. Without careful planning and consultation this can impact on the utility of pavements and restrict the ability of blind and partially sighted people and others to navigate our streets free of obstacles.

Find out more:

You can read the full summary from Thomas Pocklington Trust on their website, click here.

If you would like to find out more about the services and support we provide, please get in touch with our friendly team on: 01243 828555 or email enquiries@4sight.org.uk

 

Content taken from Queen’s Speech Briefing 2022 – Thomas Pocklington Trust (pocklington-trust.org.uk), correct as of 10/05/2022.