Hina Bokhari OBE says Sadiq Khan's plan lacks the ambition, transformation and investment needed to tackle the barriers facing Disabled Londoners
Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member Hina Bokhari OBE has responded to the Mayor of London's publication of the capital's first ever Action Plan for Deaf and Disabled Londoners, welcoming some individual measures but warning that the plan fails to deliver the co-production and ambition that was promised.
A long overdue plan, but credit belongs to Disabled People's Organisations
Hina Bokhari OBE said: "It is shocking that we have never had a dedicated plan for Disabled Londoners before. Many of us have been calling for this for such a long time, so I welcome the fact that the Mayor has finally delivered one. And it is to the enormous credit of Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations that they have secured some useful steps forward, including on employment support, better engagement, disability commissioners, accessible advice, improving housing data and making it easier for disabled victims to report crime.
Broken promises on co-production
"But this is a plan built on broken promises. The Mayor promised that it would be co-produced, but co-production this was not. We know Disabled People's Organisations brought forward many suggestions that could and should have taken London much further, yet many were simply disregarded by City Hall. The Mayor also promised to be there to launch the plan himself, yet in the end he did not even show up, which is not surprising given it's hardly a plan to shout from the rooftops about.
Lacking ambition and investment
"Ultimately, the Mayor's plan is completely lacking the scale of ambition, transformation and investment needed to even make a dent in the barriers disabled Londoners face.
Weakest on housing and transport
"And the plan is perhaps weakest where the barriers are greatest: housing and transport. The Mayor's plan shows absolutely no urgency to dismantle them. On housing, we still do not even know how many accessible homes disabled Londoners need, what type they need, or how that demand will change in future, let alone have a plan to deliver them. On transport, there is no serious programme here to accelerate step-free access or close the huge gaps that still exist across the network. Just this week, for example, TfL celebrated 100 years since the Northern line was extended to Morden, yet there is still not a single step-free station between Morden and London Bridge. A century on, that kind of accessibility failure is simply unacceptable.
A plan that papers over the cracks
“My biggest fear is that this plan risks papering over London's accessibility failures rather than confronting them. There are some worthwhile measures here, but the painful reality of the Mayor's first ever Disability Action Plan is that the ambition to really tackle those systemic barriers and genuinely make a difference to Disabled Londoners' lives is simply not there.”