Closed petition Recognise Inflammatory bowel disease as a 'registered' disability

Closed on 30 March 2015

I am raising this petition today on behalf of all Inflammatory Bowel Disease sufferers in the UK. Recently published data suggests as many as 620,000 people in the UK are sufferers. IBD (including Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis) is a serious and debilitating condition which is often overlooked by many. Despite it being recognised as a disability under the equality act (in the workplace) IBD is not recognised officially as a disability that can be registered with the government. Meaning that sufferers are unable to obtain blue badges, keys to disabled toilets and more crucially disability benefits. Having IBD as a recognised disability would be a life line for many. We need to campaign to change the way that IBD is viewed, and we need the government to take it seriously. It is not right to award disability benefits to those who do not need them, but it is also not right to keep them from those who do.