Making parliaments accessible?

Disability and Democracy: How the politics of accessible technologies is changing in Canada and the UK

By Alice Craft

‘We will all be disabled one day, some of us just beat you to it’ says Dave Dame, native Ontarian and Director of Accessibility at Microsoft, who was born with cerebral palsy. This profound thought does not cross the minds of most able-bodied people on a daily basis, but it now must.

In the past decade there has been a push across all sectors in society to implement Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) initiatives. Aside from the occasional office training workshop, or guest speaker at school or university, how have our communities changed to ensure they are truly accessible to everyone? Parliaments must now take the lead on accessibility issues, making parliaments themselves places in which disabled people can participate. This includes expanding access to decision making and law-making processes to disabled people, making parliaments a workplace in which disabled people can thrive, and ensuring that parliamentarians serve the needs of disabled constituents and citizens.

The intersection of accessibility and political life was hotly discussed at the 65th annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference held recently in Halifax, Nova Scotia. MPs, lawmakers, and elected representatives from Australia, Asia, Africa, the West Indies, the UK, and Canada came together to discuss common challenges and opportunities for collaboration. The great diversity of experiences, opinions, and expertise shared across this four-day event made it a unique and valuable experience for any globally minded parliamentarian. Contemporary workshop topics included the safeguarding of female MPs from online and real-life abuse, and innovative ways to connect with constituents in the aftermath of mass lockdowns because of the covid-19 pandemic.

Alice Craft, writer, and Tom Davies, Communications Manager pictured together in front of Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference signage, Halifax August 2022

One of the busiest sessions, however, was a discussion of the use of assistive technologies in parliaments. British MP Paul Maynard hosted this conversation with Dame, former VP of Scotiabank who is now helping Microsoft develop accessible technologies and British-Columbian MP Carla Qualtrough, Canada’s Minister for Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, all of whom speak from the perspective of a person living with disability.

The mix of public servants and corporate representatives taking part in this discussion begged the question - “What exactly do democratic parliaments and software companies have in common?” Simply put, their success, or failure, lies in meeting the needs of their service users or citizens. As of 2022, the Canadian parliament serves almost 39 million Canadians. The UK Houses of Parliament serves just over 67 million Brits. Can you guess how many people are served by Microsoft programmes? Over 1 billion, almost 10 times the combined population of Canada and the UK!

Dame says the key to successful accessibility technologies is having them created by the people who are going to use them. This is especially crucial for technologies such as bespoke computer mouses for people with unconventional co-ordination or mobility requirements. The same goes for legislating in parliaments. As Qualtrough summarised, “there should be nothing about us, without us”. People who live with disabilities need to shape the decisions that are made in parliaments that affect their lives and livelihoods, including decisions on employment practices in regard to disabled people and decisions over disability benefits. If the UK parliament were representative of the British population, there would be 130 MPs with a disability. As of the 2017 general election, there were only 5 MPs who publicly declared that they had a disability. The British parliament has pledged funds to increase the number of representatives with a disability elected to public office and Canada has opted to exclude accessibility costs in the spending limit calculations for prospective parliamentary candidates, but there are other, more practical issues that have been overlooked.

As a place of work, parliamentary buildings need to be designed with accessibility in mind. As Dame put it “there is no point talking about having disabled people at the table if they can’t even get in the room”. The physical barriers disabled people face in accessing parliamentary buildings is an important piece of the puzzle that has so long been phrased as the ‘problem’ of disability. A point that was emphasized by all the panellists, was the fact that having a disability was not a ‘problem’ or an ‘issue to be dealt with.’ The root of the issue is the mismanagement of the environment in which a disabled person lives or works. For example, how is the UK Houses of Parliament going to attract disabled policymakers and thought-leaders if there is just one wheelchair accessible lift in the entire building? Chances are people with disabilities would opt to avoid working in an environment seemingly designed to keep them out. Parliaments must be initiative-taking and not reactive when it comes to creating inclusive and accessible working environments. Often this will make the environment better for everyone else working there. Qualtrough shared some of the thanks she received from fellow MPs when she requested that legislative documents be published in a larger font size on account of her sight impairment. It turned out that everyone benefitted from incorporating accessible working practices, not just the person with a declared disability. Who else might benefit from creating accessible spaces and working practices in parliamentary practices?

Proactive accessibility policies can also encourage the participation of disabled constituents in political and democratic exercises. Aside from the power of representation, disabled parliamentarians can spearhead the incorporation of accessible technologies to serve their constituents. Recent changes in the UK and Canada have included the live streaming of committee sessions and closed captioning of recorded videos from parliamentary sessions. The rise in viral video clips from lively parliamentary sessions like Prime Minister’s Question Time (PMQs) shows an appetite for this increased access and engagement. Lengthy meeting minutes from Hansard in a size 10 font certainly do not have the same shareability or engagement. Outside of parliament, MPs should also ensure that their community surgeries are held in accessible venues with assistive technologies proactively incorporated into these sessions. Once again, these practices would not only benefit constituents with accessibility requirements, but it could encourage many more people to be actively engaged in politics and have their voices heard.

At the start of another new government in the UK, and in the wake of recent local elections across Canada, there is room for new ideas to take hold in our parliaments. By making their working practices and places accessible to disabled people, politicians could improve the lives of their current and future colleagues as well as their constituents with the help of assistive technologies.

British-born Alice Craft currently lives in Toronto, Ontario following completion of her Master’s degree at Dalhousie University with the support of the Canada Memorial Foundation. For more info about Alice, please see an introductory video here