It is the world’s biggest showcase of equality for the disabled.
But that didn’t help David Blunkett when he arrived at the Paralympics opening ceremony with his guide dog.
The former Home Secretary, who has been blind since birth, was unable to take his seat because he had his dog in tow.
Mr Blunkett was shocked and angry after a ‘stroppy and insensitive’ Games official refused to let him sit in his allocated spot.
After a frank exchange, a makeshift seat was eventually arranged for the Labour MP on an ‘exposed, blustery gantry’ for the three-and-a-half hour show.
Mr Blunkett, 65, one of the country’s most high-profile guide dog users, decided not to ‘have a hissy fit’, insisting he did not want to detract from the spirit of the Paralympics and its ‘demonstration of equality of opportunity’.
But he has now spoken out to ensure that others with guide dogs do not endure the same humiliation.
He told the Daily Mail: ‘This isn’t just about me. This is about getting it right.
‘I want Games organisers to learn a lesson for the future so that people with guide dogs can be treated as equals.’
Mr Blunkett said he had to ‘bite his lip’ after he was told that his seat was unsuitable for assistance dog Cosby, a black curly-coated retriever cross.
He said that up until that point, Games officials and volunteers had treated him with the utmost respect – but things changed when he tried to take his seat.
He added: ‘What happened highlights how far we still have to go in changing attitudes towards the challenges faced by people with disabilities.’
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That’s disgusting.
Would be interesting to know who the official works for or was this another badly trained work scheme volunteer/slave?
Either way it is despicable and totally unacceptable
the UK is going to the dogs, courtesy Atos and Scameron
It’s like a sketch from Little Britain…. You couldn’t make this up.
someone take this morons uniform and shove it up his whizzway…a guide dog is an aid to the blind…HELLO MORON YOU MAY NEED ONE YOURSELF ONEDAY…GET A LIFE CRETIN…THE FIGHT GOES ON…REGARDS TO THE LIKE MINDED…SANDRA.
i wonder if it had been a tory mp in the same situ be handled the same?…dont think so,do you?
Yes Jules, I do think a Tory would have been treated the same. I know G4S got caught short, but I don’t think the Conservative Party had to step in to help staff the Olympic Stadium.
What is disgusting is that he spoke to the daily hate…