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Social Affairs and Housing Minister Ragnar Þór Ingólfsson will withdraw a proposed change that would have eased an employment ban in services for disabled people, Iceland Review reports. He said the provision would be removed before the bill is introduced in Alþingi. The draft would have replaced the automatic exclusion of people convicted of homicide or serious assault with an individual assessment of their suitability. Disability organisations objected, arguing that the implications for service users’ safety had not been adequately assessed. According to the report, the ministry proposed the change after the Welfare Quality and Supervision Authority identified inconsistencies with child-protection law. Under those rules, most convictions other than sexual offences are assessed individually. Officials pointed to circumstances in which a conviction from decades earlier could automatically prevent someone from becoming a support family, even if that person’s circumstances had changed. The proposed amendment did not include lifting the ban for sexual offences. The Icelandic Autism Association and the Icelandic Disability Alliance raised concerns about the vulnerability of disabled people receiving services. They argued that some service users may have limited ability to report violence or seek help, making a fuller safety assessment necessary before changing the rules. The minister’s decision means the proposed individual-assessment exemption will be removed from the bill before its introduction. The withdrawal addresses the disputed employment provision; the report does not describe the fate of other measures in the legislation.
Social Affairs and Housing Minister Ragnar Þór Ingólfsson will withdraw a proposed change that would have eased an employment ban in services for disabled people, Iceland Review reports. He said the provision would be removed before the bill is introduced in Alþingi. The draft would have replaced the automatic exclusion of people convicted of homicide or serious assault with an individual assessment of their suitability. Disability organisations objected, arguing that the implications for service users’ safety had not been adequately assessed. According to the report, the ministry proposed the change after the Welfare Quality and Supervision Authority identified inconsistencies with child-protection law. Under those rules, most convictions other than sexual offences are assessed individually. Officials pointed to circumstances in which a conviction from decades earlier could automatically prevent someone from becoming a support family, even if that person’s circumstances had changed. The proposed amendment did not include lifting the ban for sexual offences. The Icelandic Autism Association and the Icelandic Disability Alliance raised concerns about the vulnerability of disabled people receiving services. They argued that some service users may have limited ability to report violence or seek help, making a fuller safety assessment necessary before changing the rules. The minister’s decision means the proposed individual-assessment exemption will be removed from the bill before its introduction. The withdrawal addresses the disputed employment provision; the report does not describe the fate of other measures in the legislation.
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