‘Local government needs to be made more accessible for disabled candidates’

When I decided to run as a candidate for Labour in Hengrove and Whitchurch Park ward, I always knew it would be difficult. But I was ready for the challenge and prepared to put the work in.

We would normally have campaigned via door knocking and local events, as well as the traditional methods of leafleting and phonebanking (canvassing through phone calls). Most of these have been seriously curbed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Being profoundly deaf, I had access to a fund which would allow me to make a claim for support, such as British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters or note takers, so that I had a chance to campaign on the same equal footing as other candidates.

After the Access to Elected Office Fund fell victim to Tory austerity and was axed after the 2015 election, it was temporarily replaced with EnAble – a similar fund that was only introduced thanks to the legal challenges of three disabled politicians.

However, after the local elections were postponed last year, the Government decided to scrap this fund, leaving disabled candidates with no financial support and being unable to compete on a level playing field.

Considering that in 2016, the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities argued that “grave or systematic violations” of disabled peoples’ rights had taken place within the UK, it is disgraceful that the Government cut support to disabled candidates, rather than strengthening its existing support schemes.

Alongside my local MP, Karin Smyth, I’ve called for this funding scheme to be reopened, yet I haven’t even had the courtesy of a response.

https://www.facebook.com/981299138616232/videos/526071531415812

Given that the vast majority of this election’s campaigning is currently done via phonebanking, I’m at a serious disadvantage and I’m struggling.

Many of the volunteers who support candidates in their campaign do not have the capacity to solely support me as there are many other candidates across Bristol who also need volunteers.

Fortunately, I’m able to access City Hall meetings through the use of BSL interpreters, which they are legally required to provide.

Mayor Marvin Rees and the Labour group leader, Marg Hickman, supported Bristol South’s bid for funding to make the constituency meetings more inclusive, but I still feel like I’m being let down by the Government.

I know I have a lot to give the city of Bristol, but the Government’s refusal to give any information regarding financial support for disabled candidates means that I’m currently discriminated against in a system that is supposed to be fair and democratic.

Elected representatives are meant to be representative of the people they serve. How can we have a truly democratic process that’s inclusive of people from all walks of life if people like me aren’t being given supported to run for office?

https://twitter.com/Leestarrelliot2/status/1361750845335945217

Deaf candidates should not be forced to pay out of their own pocket for interpreters and note-takers. It’s simply not affordable and means only the wealthiest of disabled candidates are able to afford to stand for office.

This is directly reflected in the number of disabled people in Parliament.  The Government claims to be represent the diverse public, yet disabled people have a fraction of the representation they should.

One in five people across the UK self-identify as disabled, yet less than one per cent of MPs do. If we want our Government to represent our society, we need to start from the bottom-up, and start by making local government more accessible for disabled candidates.

The Government must act to remove the barriers that stop disabled people running for office, invest in them and support them, and encourage them to come forward – just as they rightly have with Black and minority ethnic groups and women.

If they don’t, they risk freezing disabled people out of public office and making politics less diverse and politicians completely unrepresentative of the country.

I’m not asking for any sort of special treatment; all I’m asking is that disabled people are given the same opportunities as every other candidate.

Lee Starr-Elliott is a Labour candidate for Hengrove & Whitchurch Park ward, a postman and regional disabilities officer for the Communication Workers Union

Main photo: Lee Starr-Elliott

Read more: ‘The all-male metro mayor lineup is a depressing indictment of politics in the UK’