Blue Jackie: Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill — First Reading 
Blue Jackie: Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill — First Reading 
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Dr JACKIE BLUE (National) 
: 
 National will be supporting the Disability (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) Bill going to the select committee. The purpose of this bill is to amend legislative provisions that are inconsistent with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and to amend the Human Rights Act 1993 to clarify the scope of its provisions enabling a person to refuse to accommodate a person’s disability in certain areas of activity. 
These amendments will enable New Zealand to ratify the convention that it signed on 30 March 2007. After signing the convention in March 2007 a process of consultation with disability groups and the Human Rights Commission began. As of April 2008 I understand that 126 countries have signed the convention and 71 have signed the optional protocol. This bill begins the parliamentary stage and National will be supporting the bill going to select committee in order for public submissions to be heard. 
If this bill is passed into law it will mean that a regular report to the United Nations on implementation will be required. The first report will be due after 2 years and then after every 4 years. I read the United Nations fact sheet on persons with disabilities and quite frankly the facts were chilling. Around 10 percent of the world’s population or 650 million people live with a disability. This figure is increasing through population growth ageing and medical advances. In countries with life expectancies over 70 years individuals spend 8 years on average living with disabilities. Eighty percent of people with disabilities live in developing countries. In OECD countries disability rates are significantly higher among groups with lower educational attainment. Ninety percent of children with disabilities in developing countries do not attend school. On average 19 percent of less educated people have disabilities compared with 11 percent among the better educated. 
In most OECD countries women report a higher incidence of disabilities than men. The World Bank estimates that 20 percent of the world’s poorest people are disabled and tend to be regarded in their own communities as the most disadvantaged. Women with disabilities are recognised as being multiply disadvantaged experiencing exclusion on account of their gender and their disability. Women and girls with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to abuse. Mortality for children with disabilities may be as high as 80 percent in countries where mortality among under-5-year-olds as a whole has increased below 20 percent. Unemployment among the disabled is as high as 80 percent in some countries. Often employers assume that persons with disabilities are unable to work. Companies report that employees with disabilities have better retention rates thereby reducing the high cost of turnover. There is also concern about violence. Persons with disabilities are more likely to be victims of violence or rape and less likely to obtain police intervention legal protection or preventive care. Research also shamefully indicates that violence against children with disabilities occurs at annual rates at least 1.7 times greater than for their non-disabled peers. 
What about the New Zealand situation? I think we have a lot of work to do according to the 2006 New Zealand Disability Survey. In 2006 an estimated 660000 New Zealanders reported having a disability—approximately 17 percent of the total population. That figure is significantly lower than the two previous surveys in 1996 and 2001 and it is really unclear why there has been a drop in the percentage. The report does caution about making an inference about trends. 
Maori have higher disability rates than other ethnic groups in every age. The majority of Maori with a disability—that is 63 percent—are younger than 45 years old. Nearly one-third of children with disabilities and nearly one-quarter of adults aged 15 to 44 with disabilities were Maori. In 2006 82 percent of people with disabilities were adults living in households 5 percent were adults living in residential facilities and 14 percent were children under the age of 15 living in households. The percentage of people with a disability increased with age from 10 percent of children under the age of 15 to 45 percent of adults aged 65 and over. 
An estimated 5 percent of children have special education needs and this was the most common disability type for children. Chronic conditions or health problems and psychiatric or psychological disabilities were the next most common disability types. Conditions or health problems that existed at birth and diseases or illnesses were the most common causes of disability for children. The most common disability types for adults were physical and sensory impairments. Disease illness accidents and injuries were the most common causes of disabilities for adults. The most common types of accident or injury causing disabilities were those that occurred at work. Nearly all adults living in residential care facilities reported having a disability—99.7 percent—and most had multiple disabilities and high support needs. 
I would like to mention learning disabilities specifically. An estimated 5 percent of children have special education needs. That equates to 41000 children in New Zealand. I visited a local SPELD group which is the acronym for Specific Learning Difficulties that caters for children who learn differently. Parents and SPELD tutors provide assistance to people of all ages with learning problems notably dyslexia. It is thought that as many as 10 percent of the population may have learning problems. These children are often very intelligent and often incorrect assumptions are made. One of SPELD’s greatest concerns is that children with learning disabilities almost inevitably develop behavioural problems as a result of frustration and anger unless those difficulties are diagnosed and treated. The behaviour then becomes a symptom that attracts attention from school authorities that are oblivious to its real cause. One has to wonder how many adults with learning disabilities fill our prisons at the present time. 
SPELD is concerned that learning disabilities are under-diagnosed and that teachers are poorly equipped to intervene. Like anything in health early detection means better outcomes but this is not happening in this particular area. In summary National will be supporting this bill going to the Health Committee. Thank you.