Source · Select Committees · Transport Committee
Recommendation 26
26
Acknowledged
Informal enforcement methods by regulators prove insufficient for addressing systemic accessibility failures.
Conclusion
The confidence that regulators evince in informal methods of enforcement and its deterrent effect on other operators is not justified by the experience of travellers. We recognise that reputational incentives such as performance rankings have a part to play, as do informal collaboration and education, but failure to adhere to legal requirements demands more robust and immediate responses. Thresholds for taking formal enforcement action are in general set too high, requiring evidence of repeated and enduring failures. As a result, the number of formal actions that have been taken in each sector is so low that they can generally be recalled individually by enforcement bodies. This cannot be right when disabled travellers themselves typically lose count of the number of times they encounter serious problems. This results in a significant enforcement gap, and operators getting away with repeated poor practice. (Conclusion, Paragraph 164)
Government Response Summary
The government agrees on the importance of regulators fulfilling their accessibility duties and will reiterate this in annual leadership letters. It intends to establish a collaborative forum to identify practical steps to improve accountability and strengthen enforcement mechanisms, and to co-produce an accessibility charter.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
31. The Department agrees that there should be no ambiguity about the importance of all relevant parties fulfilling their duties on accessibility. The Department sets the policy framework for transport accessibility, which regulators enforce. As the inquiry identified, the effectiveness of regulators in fulfilling their responsibilities is central to breaking down barriers and upholding disabled people’s rights. As a first step to making sure that this is the case, the Department will reiterate the importance and necessity of prioritising accessibility and equalities duties in the annual leadership directive letters issued by Ministers to the senior leadership of our departmental Arms-length Bodies (ALBs) and agencies. It is important that as regulators set forth their priorities and business plans, that accessibility is properly considered alongside their wider regulatory objectives. 32. It is right to highlight that regulators and agencies should be resourced and set-up in a manner that maximises their efficiency and effectiveness in fulfilling their remit, with clear reporting mechanisms in place on how they undertake and enforce their duties and responsibilities – and that these bodies are ultimately held accountable by Ministers for their performance. The recently announced Cabinet Office review of ALB’s commissioned by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, to improve performance, maximise efficiency and provide clear Ministerial oversight will be an important consideration in this regard. The Department for Transport will be engaged in this review, and the performance of ALB’s with relevant accessibility related responsibilities, will be an important consideration in this process. As part of this work, the Government will consider what legislation may be required so that the review outcomes can be implemented and delivered upon. 33. As this wider review is undertaken the Department intends to work further with representative bodies of disabled people, regulators and operators by convening these stakeholders together to determine how collective action can be taken to: a. Identify and commit to practical steps to improve accountability for accessibility failures. b. Strengthen enforcement mechanisms and regulatory alignment. c. Elevate the voices of disabled people in shaping enforcement strategies. d. Showcase and scale up exemplary practices in training, monitoring, and redress. 34. The Department envisages that these outputs can be supported by the co-production of an accessibility charter that brings together in one place the guiding principles that underpin the rights and responsibilities of disabled passengers, regulators and enforcement bodies, and operators. The Department is aware that the National Centre for Accessible Transport has worked with the Accessible Transport Policy Commission to create an Accessible Transport Charter for local and regional political leaders,4 and it is the Department’s intention to work collaboratively to build upon this pioneering piece and amplify it to the national level.