On 17th October, in a Westminster Hall, Catherine McKinnell, Labour MP for Newcastle North, introduced a debate amongst MPs with the following words: “I beg to move that this House has considered supporting and safeguarding adults with learning disabilities”.
In doing so, she was again highlighting the truly shocking murder of Lee Irving and speaking for Lee’s family, asking what had changed since 2015 to prevent similar incidents.
The full transcript of the debate is available via this link and we encourage you to read it (It is not too long).
The discussion considered the relationship between degrees of ‘independent living’ and levels of risk; levels of disability hate crime; the training and awareness of health and social care professionals; the inadequate treatment of people with learning disabilities with the criminal justice and penal systems; and what improvements are feasible in the current financial climate. As we said, well worth reading…
We noted especially how Shadow Minister Barbara Keeley spoke up for the involvement of families and family carers: “My hon. Friend spoke powerfully of the need to give families of adult children with learning disabilities much clearer and increased rights over their adult child’s welfare. She highlighted well the horrific events that can occur when families do not remain part of the decision-making process. I will repeat, because they are important, the two recommendations of Lee Irving’s family. The first is that the move from children’s to adults’ services be better managed, to ensure a smoother transition without loss of support, and that services consider the capacity, rather than the age, of the individual. That was clearly an important factor in the case of Lee Irving. Secondly—and very importantly, because this matters to many families—they recommend that families remain part of the decision-making process in the case of vulnerable adults and are fully involved in and consulted on best interest and other decisions relating to family members”