BIHR Statement on Bill of Rights

Statement from the British Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) in response to today's publication of the Government's Green Paper on Rights and Responsibilities: developing our constitutional framework

Ceri Goddard, Acting Director of the British Institute of Human Rights said:

"We welcome the Government's continuing commitment to the Human Rights Act. However we are disappointed that the Green Paper does not set forth ambitious and imaginative proposals to safeguard a comprehensive set of rights for everyone in these challenging times. What the Government is proposing is at best half measures and at worst hot air.

"The Government seems so focused on individuals' responsibilities it appears to have lost sight of its own responsibilities to give equal moral and legal weight to all our fundamental human rights including health, education and housing.

"A Bill of Rights will only work if people see human rights delivering positive changes in their own lives, and the lives of others. It must build upon the real difference the Human Rights Act is already making to people in all walks of life, from care homes to hospitals and schools."

The consultation on a Bill of Rights potentially provides an opportunity to safeguard and reinforce the value of fundamental rights for all people in the UK, provided the following essential issues are recognised:

A Bill of Rights should include all human rights protections set out in the Human Rights Act: It is absolutely critical that any new Bill of Rights does not fall below the minimum standards set out in the Human Rights Act, which enforces in the UK the rights protected under the European Convention on Human Rights.

All people in the UK, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, must enjoy equal protection of their human rights. Human rights by definition apply to all human beings, they are universal and do not depend on a person's immigration or citizenship status. .

Human rights already trigger responsibilities. For many rights this includes balancing the rights of the individual against the rights of others and wider society, such as freedom of expression, or right to a private or family life. An exception to this is the prohibition of torture, which can never be violated under any circumstances. BIHR is concerned that the Government's Green Paper on a Bill of Rights and Responsibilities may leave a false impression that existing human rights do not already carry clear lines of responsibility, accountability, monitoring and enforcement.

A Bill of Rights provides an opportunity to safeguard in UK law, those human rights which the UK is has already agreed to internationally. BIHR is disappointed that the Government is not making a clear case for enforceable human rights that cover economic and social aspects of our lives, such as health, education and housing. It is these rights that often hold greatest meaning to people in Britain. There are many ways of making such rights enforceable which permits judicial oversight, whilst retaining Parliament's role in formulating social policy and allocating resources. A Bill of Rights can also embed protections to a right a jury trial and other civil liberties.

The public debate about a Bill of Rights must be comprehensive and inclusive: BIHR believes that the debate on a Bill of Rights must involve a wide range of people in society, including the most vulnerable and disadvantaged whose human rights are often most at risk yet who often have the least say. This requires the Government to ensure that any consultation process is fully accessible to ensure equal opportunity for everyone to take part.

A debate on human rights must provide people with the facts about human rights. BIHR believes that people must be given comprehensive information about human rights, which includes demonstrating the positive changes human rights can make in people's lives. It is only when people understand and own human rights that they become relevant and real.

Michael Wills MP, Justice Minster is giving a public lecture to BIHR on the Bill of Rights on 21 April, 1-2pm at Mander Hall, Mabledon Place, London WC1B 9DB.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. For further information or a spokesperson contact:
British Institute of Human Rights, Switchboard 020 7848 1818
Jean Candler, jcandler@bihr.org.uk, 020 7848 1839, out of hours 07985 982103 or Sanchita Hosali, shosali@bihr.org.uk, 020 7848 1817.

2. The British Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) is a human rights organisation aiming to bring human rights to life. It is committed to challenging inequality and injustice in the UK, through supporting people to use human rights to improve their lives, and to develop more effective public policy and practice, through training and awareness-raising.

3. The Human Rights Act brings most of the rights contained in the European Convention on Human Rights into UK domestic law. The Human Rights Act does this by placing a duty on all public authorities to act in a way that respects and fits with the rights in the European Convention on Human Rights. The British Institute of Human Rights believes that the Human Rights Act is making a valuable difference to people's lives, especially for the vulnerable, as outlined by over 30 case studies in its report The Human Rights Act: Changing Lives (2nd ed.) available here

4. Click here for details of forthcoming BIHR lunchtime lectures.

Download the full statement here