Rt Hon Seema Malhotra MP, Minister for Equalities 
Rt Hon Sir Alan Campbell MP Leader of the House of Commons 
Rt Hon Sir Stephen Timms MP, Minister for Social Security and Disability 

June 2026 

Dear Minister, 

We are writing to you as a group of charities and organisations to urge you to bring forward the Draft Equality (Race and Disability) Bill and ensure it is given parliamentary time so it can be passed into law. 

Too many disabled people face barriers to getting into and staying in work, including negative attitudes and a lack of access to flexible working and reasonable adjustments. Scope’s research shows that disabled people are more than twice as likely to fall out of work as non-disabled people. If the Government is serious about tackling the disability employment gap, this must change. 

Pay gap reporting is a vital step towards disability equality in the workplace. By publishing this data, employers can identify the barriers their disabled employees face and make changes to their working practices to remove these barriers and retain disabled talent. Publishing this data also demonstrates that an employer is serious about creating an inclusive workplace. Reporting builds trust and accountability: 36% of disabled people say they are more likely to consider working for an employer that publishes disability workforce data. 

We were pleased to see the Government commit to legislate on this in 2024. However, two years later, we are still waiting for the bill to come before Parliament. The Government has an opportunity to take bold and proactive steps towards closing the disability employment gap by bringing this bill forward.  

We welcome further opportunities to ensure that when disabled people do enter the workplace, they are properly supported. Too often, requests for reasonable adjustments are delayed or denied. While the Equality Act 2010 and Access to Work give disabled people the right to request adjustments, many employers lack the confidence or knowledge to put these into practice. We therefore welcome further steps the Government can take to address this issue, such as implementing the recommendations of the Work and Pensions Committee inquiry: Disability at Work. 

Once again, we urge you to bring the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill onto the parliamentary agenda as soon as possible.  

Yours Sincerely, 

Scope, John McLachlan, Interim CEO
Scope, Sir Robin Millar CBE, Chair of Trustees
Scope Ambassador, Dr Shani Dhanda

Access to Work Collective 

Arthritis UK, Deborah Alsina MBE, Chief Executive 

Asthma + Lung UK, Sarah Sleet, CEO 

Bipolar UK, Simon Kitchen, CEO 

Diabetes UK, Colette Marshall, Chief Executive 

Difference North East, Christopher Hartworth, Director   

Disability@Work, Professor Kim Hoque 

Disability Law Service, Hannah West, Acting Co-CEO 

Disability Rights UK, Fazilet Hadi, Head of Policy, Advice and Information 

Ethnicity Pay Gap Campaign, Dianne Greyson, Founder 

Epilepsy Action, Rebekah Smith, Chief Executive 

Guide Dogs, Andrew Lennox, CEO 

Inclusion Barnet, Caroline Collier, CEO 

Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Julian Hartley, Chief Executive 

Kidney Care UK, Paul Bristow, Chief Executive 

Mind, Dr Sarah Hughes, Chief Executive 

Mencap, Jon Sparkes OBE, Chief Executive 

Mental Health UK, Brian Dow, CEO 

Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, Helen Undy OBE, Chief Executive 

MS Society, Sarah Rawlings, Executive Director of Research and External Affairs 

MS Together, Amy Thompson, CEO 

Muscular Dystrophy UK, Andrew Fletcher, Chief Executive 

National Autistic Society, Caroline Stevens, Chief Executive 

National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society, Peter Foxton, CEO 

Parkinsons UK, Rowan Wathes, Associate Directory of Policy and Health Strategy 

People Like Us, Sheeraz Gulsher, Co-founder 

Rethink Mental Illness, Mark Winstanley, CEO 

RNIB, Simon Antrobus, CEO 

The ME Association, Dr Charles Shepherd, Honorary Medical Adviser 

Thomas Pocklington Trust, Charles Colquhoun, Chief Executive 

Trussell, Helen Barnard, Director of Policy 

Voluntary Organisations Disability Group, Dr Rhidian Hughes, Chief Executive