Members of Parliament and peers are pressing the government to establish uniform national standards governing disabled individuals’ ability to travel internationally with full-time personal assistants funded through health budgets. The push comes as evidence emerges of stark disparities in how different local NHS care boards and councils handle such requests, with eligibility often depending on geographic location rather than consistent policy.
A case study illustrates the problem: two men with identical health conditions and care packages living 40 miles apart face contradictory rulings on overseas travel funding. One individual has been effectively barred from international travel for eight years despite having personal resources to fund his own costs, while his counterpart in a neighboring health board area receives an annual travel allocation. Both men are graduates; one works in marketing while the other holds a first-class degree.
Disability rights advocates describe the current system as discriminatory and counter to human rights principles. Jane Campbell, a prominent campaigner, characterized the restrictions as equivalent to monitoring individuals and contradictory to government messaging about supporting disabled employment and independence. Debbie Abrahams, chair of the Commons work and pensions select committee, suggested the rules may violate the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which the United Kingdom has formally adopted.
The Department of Health and Social Care maintains that integrated care boards should assess travel requests individually, weighing health and wellbeing considerations. However, recent policy updates from some boards indicate reluctance to fund such expenses. One NHS integrated care board stated last week that while holiday travel requests would be considered, they would “not ordinarily” receive approval. The inconsistent approach has prompted calls for standardized guidelines that would protect disabled people’s rights to equal travel opportunities and experiences.
MP Marsha de Cordova, a former government minister responsible for disability policy, emphasized that travel rights should not depend on “the mood of local officials” and stressed the necessity for immediate national clarity on the matter.
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