A disability advocate is pleased to see progress being made on creating accessibility legislation.
New Brunswick is working on a legislative framework for consultation, with draft legislation to follow.
Shelley Petit, chair of the New Brunswick Coalition for Persons with Disabilities, said the legislation is long overdue.
“There’s so many things that I don’t think people realize happen to people with disabilities and we have no protections,” Petit said in a recent interview.
“70 per cent of all disabilities are invisible disabilities that nobody sees. We are mocked, we are ridiculed, we lose our jobs because accommodations aren’t made, we struggle to get housing.”
The select committee on accessibility in New Brunswick released an interim report back in December.
The all-party committee of the legislative assembly is led by Saint Croix Liberal MLA Kathy Bockus.
“You can tell that they listened to people with disabilities who spoke. They want to go to a social model which is where you don’t have to have a medical diagnosis, they’re looking more at how it impacts your everyday life,” said Petit.
“Now it’s to make sure that when it gets in front of the legislature that they don’t remove all of those key points that have been put in there.”
Petit believes the legislation should include accessibility standards for housing, which would require developers to dedicate so many units as accessible.
She also wants to see employment protections for people with disabilities and more options for public transit.
There is no timeframe at this point on when the draft legislation will be released.
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