Disability Discrimination Act 1995

Valid from 05/12/2005

[F1Relationships between locally-electable authorities and their membersE+W+S

15AInterpretation of sections 15B and 15CE+W+S

(1)Sections 15B and 15C apply to the following authorities—

(a)the Greater London Authority;

(b)a county council (in England or Wales);

(c)a county borough council (in Wales);

(d)a district council (in England);

(e)a London borough council;

(f)the Common Council of the City of London;

(g)the Council of the Isles of Scilly;

(h)a council constituted under section 2 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994;

(i)a parish council (in England); and

(j)a community council (in Wales or Scotland).

(2)In relation to a member of an authority to which sections 15B and 15C apply, a reference in those sections to his carrying-out of official business is to his doing of anything—

(a)as member of the authority;

(b)as member of any body to which he is appointed by, or is appointed following nomination by, the authority or a group of bodies that includes the authority; or

(c)as member of any other body if it is a public body.

(3)In this section and sections 15B and 15C “member”, in relation to the Greater London Authority, means Mayor of London or member of the London Assembly.

15BAuthorities and their members: discrimination and harassmentE+W+S

(1)It is unlawful for an authority to which this section applies to discriminate against a disabled person who is a member of the authority—

(a)in the opportunities which it affords the disabled person to receive training, or any other facility, for his carrying-out of official business;

(b)by refusing to afford, or deliberately not affording, the disabled person any such opportunities; or

(c)by subjecting the disabled person to any other detriment in connection with his carrying-out of official business.

(2)It is unlawful for an authority to which this section applies to subject a disabled person who is a member of the authority to harassment in connection with his carrying-out of official business.

(3)A member of an authority to which this section applies is not subjected to a detriment for the purposes of subsection (1)(c) by reason of—

(a)his not being appointed or elected to an office of the authority;

(b)his not being appointed or elected to, or to an office of, a committee or sub-committee of the authority; or

(c)his not being appointed or nominated in exercise of any power of the authority, or of a group of bodies that includes the authority, to appoint, or nominate for appointment, to any body.

(4)Regulations may make provision as to the circumstances in which treatment is to be taken to be justified, or is to be taken not to be justified, for the purposes of section 3A(1)(b) as it has effect for the interpretation of “discriminate” in subsection (1).

(5)Regulations under subsection (4) may (in particular) provide for section 3A(3) to apply with prescribed modifications, or not to apply, for those purposes; but treatment of a disabled person cannot be justified under subsection (4) if it amounts to direct discrimination falling within section 3A(5).

(6)If, in a case falling within section 3A(1) as it has effect for the interpretation of “discriminate” in subsection (1), an authority to which this section applies is under a duty imposed by section 15C in relation to a disabled person but fails to comply with that duty, its treatment of that person cannot be justified under subsection (4) unless it would have been justified even if it had complied with that duty.