All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness

All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness

Date and Time: Tuesday 5th July, 4.00 –5.00pm

Location: Committee Room 15, Committee Corridor, Palace of Westminster

Chair: Malcolm Bruce MP

Contact: Jonathan Isaac, Director UK Council on Deafness and Clerk to the APPG on Deafness

Attendees

APPG on Deafness Members
Tom Levitt MP
Rosie Cooper MP
James Gray MP
Malcolm Bruce MP

Staff in attendance

Jonathan Isaac – Clerk
Lisa Cordaro – Palantypist
Zane Hema – BSL/English Interpreter

Guests

Lorraine Gailey – LINK Centre for Deafened People
Roger Hewitt – UK Council on Deafness
Merfyn Williams – STAGETEXT
Joanna Wootten – SIGN
Ruth Myers – UK Council on Deafness
David Myers – TAG
Brian Archbold – The Ear Foundation
Katie Hanson – Sense
Deepa Shastri - STAGETEXT
John Low – RNID
Laraine Callow – Hearing Concern
Mark Morris – RNID
Lindsay Owen – RNID
Ian Croft – British Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists
Mike Burton – Deaf Alerter Plc
Scilla Ansell – Transport for London
Tomato Lichey
Tony Markson – Action for Tinnitus Research
Graham Sutton – BAA
Lena Batra – St Albans City Hospital
Andrew Garratt – Cued Speech Association
Lucy Eve – Guy and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust
Terry Nunn – St Thomas’ Hospital
John Letts – British Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists

Minutes

The meeting started at 4.00pm

1. Apologies received from
Norman Baker MP
Rt Hon Margaret Beckett MP
Crispin Blunt MP
Tom Brake MP
Alistair Burt MP
Martin Caton MP
John Cummings MP
Jim Cunningham MP
Jim Dobbin MP
David Drew MP
Gwyneth Dunwoody MP
Bill Ethrington MP
Roger Gale MP
Barry Gardiner
Cheryl Gillan
Rt Hon John Gummer MP
Evan Harris MP
Nick Harvey MP
John Healey MP
Doug Henderson MP
John Leech MP
David Lidington MP
Rt Hon Peter Lilley MP
Rob Marris MP
Tony McNulty MP
Kali Mountford MP
Albert Owen MP
Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP
John Randall MP
Chris Ruane MP
Bob Russell MP
Adrian Sanders MP
Alison Seabeck MP
Marsha Singh MP
Andrew Slaughter MP
Ian Taylor MP
Rt Hon Ann Widdecombe MP
Mike Gapes MP
Elliot Morley MP

2. Chair’s Review of the Year
Malcolm Bruce stated that since that group was established one year ago, it has visited Oak Lodge School where a meeting was held with Stephen Carter (the Chiec Executive of OFCOM) and Maria Eagle (the minister of disabled people). The group has also tabled EDMs who set up a group website and contacts with organisations supporting deaf people. The chair also established that a meeting is required to determine the programme for the coming year.

3. Election of Honorary Officers
Two officers have been lost due to the General Election and will need to be replaced.

Chair Malcolm Bruce and Vice Chairs Tom Levitt, Tim Loughton, James Gray and Baroness Wilkins have all been formally re-elected. The vacancies that now exist are for Secretary and another Vice Chair. It was proposed that as the members that were lost were from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland we should now look to those parts of the UK for new members.

4. The Year Ahead
Some of the issues that have been identified to explore in more depth for the coming year are those relating to education, health, employment, sign language and communication support for deaf people who do not use sign language.

5. Any Other Business

6. Guest Speaker: John Low, Chief Executive RNID
See Verbatim Report.

The Meeting Ended at 5.00pm

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