The minister thanked the recognition, whose delivery coincides with the commemoration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, and highlighted the work of the Royal Disability Board, "always supported by the Royal House."
Carcedo stressed that the activity of the Royal Patronage on Disability is the result of collaboration between the different actors involved in policies in favor of people with disabilities (public, social and private entities).
The minister has taken stock of the achievements made throughout this year by the Royal Board. As noted, the First Strategic Plan of this organization has been designed "with the objective of working multiannually with clearer goals and strategies". The first call of the Reina Letizia scholarships for the inclusion of young people with disabilities in the university field has also been launched.
On the other hand, he thanked the activity of the Royal Patronage Advisory Centers, such as the Spanish Center for Documentation on Disability, which maintains the largest bibliographic fund on disability in the Spanish language; the Spanish Center for Subtitling and Audio Description (CESyA), the Center for Linguistic Standardization of the Spanish Sign Language (CNLSE) and the State Observatory on Disability.
Carcedo has assured that the Government has worked on a series of reforms whose objective is that "the equality proclaimed by the Constitution is not merely formal, but also real", as marked by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Agenda 2030. The commitment, he insisted, is to achieve not only not discriminate, but achieve the full inclusion of persons with disabilities.
The minister has taken stock of the last year recalling that the reform of the electoral legislation carried out last March has allowed for the first time in the history of Spain, more than 100,000 people with intellectual disabilities who had restricted their right to vote , have been able to exercise it.
"In this last legislature, the reform of the Constitution has also been promoted, whose article 49 continues to refer to people with disabilities as diminished," he said. "It is obvious that this wording has become obsolete and has to be modified."
The minister also highlighted the work done to consolidate the System for Autonomy and Attention to Dependency. In this regard, he stressed that work has been done to increase the visibility of centers dedicated to technological innovation to advance full accessibility, such as CEAPAT. It is also intended to strengthen OADIS, which studies the queries or complaints presented by persons with disabilities.
However, Carcedo has acknowledged that "the reforms of civil and procedural legislation on disability have yet to be approved, which aims for persons with disabilities to retain, in general, their ability to make decisions for themselves, with specific support that require. "
Among the challenges, he highlighted the fact that disability continues to be a factor of social exclusion. As explained, this situation is explained not only by the presence of a disability but by the obstacles that these people suffer in access to quality employment, integration into the use of housing, health resources or social relationships.
Carcedo explained that a fundamental function of the Royal Patronage is social awareness regarding disability. In particular, he insisted, the Royal Board of Trustees looks at those people whose disability is another reason for exclusion, such as girls and boys under 16 who have some type of disability, who are especially vulnerable in the classroom and they are exposed to the risk of being expelled from the educational field.
Finally, the minister stressed that she is also being vigilant with the increase in adolescents with psychosocial disabilities derived from Autism Spectrum Disorders or Mental Health diseases. Carcedo has ensured that the resources available to assess the situation and design actions that address their needs will be intensified, as has already been done this year through personal income tax.