Page created 30th April  2010

Disabled people still “Polls Apart” when it comes to voting 

Voting is a right that many of us probably take for granted - but for thousands of disabled people that is not the case and they are denied the opportunity to make their voices heard at the ballot box.  
Disabled people still face discrimination when it comes to voting because of a number of different access barriers. 
These can include polling stations without ramps for wheelchair users or voting information which is not available in alternative formats such as Braille.       
That’s why Labour Parliamentary Candidate Julian Ware-Lane will be supporting disability charity Scope’s Polls Apart campaign in the run-up to the General Election. Polls Apart is a campaign to ensure that disabled people have the same access to voting as everyone else.  
Julian Ware-Lane is calling on Castle Point Borough Council to ensure that all local polling stations are fully accessible to disabled people.
This could include changes such as installing temporary ramps or ensuring that polling station staff have disability equality training. 
Julian said: “In a modern democracy it is simply not acceptable that so many disabled people are still denied the opportunity to exercise their democratic right to vote.”   “I hope to raise awareness about this issue.
Disabled people must be treated equally and fairly when it comes to voting.”