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Disability rights pioneer Lord Morris passes away

Disability rights pioneer Lord Morris passes away

TRIBUTES have been paid to the disability rights pioneer Lord Morris who has passed away. He was 84.

As Labour MP Alf Morris he became the first minister for the disabled in 1974.

He went on to bring the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act into force. It was the first disability rights laws passed by Parliament and was the first such legislation anywhere in the world.

The Act gave people with disabilities equal opportunities and set out clear provisions aimed at improving access and support for the disabled.

The Labour leader in the House of Lords, Baroness Royall, said the act drawn-up by Lord Morris transformed millions of lives, not just in the United Kingdom.

She said: “With the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act he transformed the lives of millions of people throughout the world. He championed the rights of disabled people throughout his life and was deeply committed to public service.”

Lord Morris had been MP for Manchester Wythenshawe for 33 years. He had entered Parliament in 1964 and retired in 1997 and was made a life peer in the same year. 

He is survived by his wife, Lady Irene, and four children.

 

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