To ask Her Majesty's Government what improvements have been made to the quality of life of elderly people, disabled people, black and ethnic minority people and those living in relative poverty as a result of their initiatives to tackle inequalities. [HL5289]

Government are taking action to tackle inequality and promoting a fair and equal society and thereby improving the quality of life for disadvantaged groups. Government achievements since 1997 include: significantly improving the employment rate of disabled people, reducing the proportion of disabled people without a qualification, reducing the gap in employment rates for minority ethnic groups from almost 17 percentage points in 2003 to 12.5 percentage points, and lifting 900,000 pensioners out of relative poverty since 1998-99. The Government are building on these achievements through a challenging set of Public Service Agreements.