Member News
19th November 2010
Responding to Nick Clegg's announced plans to increase levels of electoral registration, Su Sayer, chief executive of United Response, asks why people with learning disabilities were not included in the list of the disenfranchised.
"These missing millions must be given back their voice," said the deputy prime minister this week, as he announced new laws which he hopes will boost the numbers of people registering to vote. Nick Clegg went on to identify people from ethnic minority communities or in areas of high social deprivation as being the least likely to exercise their democratic rights.
However, he forgot to mention people with learning disabilities, who have in recent years been the most disenfranchised group of all, due to a low awareness of their right to vote and difficulty in comprehending the jargon and small print of most political information.
That's why it should be kept in mind that simply getting more people to register, though laudable in itself, will not result in more people feeling engaged with the democratic process. Before that can happen, politicians must find ways to communicate more directly with the many people who find the language of politics complex and alienating.
Take people with learning disabilities. Before this year's general election, United Response and other disability charities campaigned for all politicians and political parties to create ‘accessible' electioneering materials, using simpler language and visual cues. In a historic first, all three major parties published accessible versions of their manifestos, and we saw the numbers of people we support who voted more than double to 40 per cent.
That is a good start, but it is not enough. Political parties and institutions need to do a lot more to make information accessible to all. Next year's referendum on electoral reform should help focus minds: the best way to secure a constitutional change that everyone can support is to make sure everyone has their say, which means reaching out to all potential voters.
A more accessible approach to communication is particularly crucial when, on the very same day as Nick Clegg's electoral announcements, the government also revealed its new vision for social care, one which hopes to give people who receive support more independence and say in their own lives. This has to include the ability to participate in our democracy.
Nor would accessible communication only benefit those with disabilities. People with low literacy or who speak English as a second language, or indeed anyone who has ever found political information complex, would benefit from simpler democratic language that everyone can understand.
Have your say...
Please enter your comments below.