Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland
People at the Centre

Become a member

Have your say on the Human Rights Act Reform consultation

  • Area of Work: The ALLIANCE
  • Type: News Item
  • Published: 15th February 2022

Find out how to get involved in the UK Government’s consultation on Human Rights Act Reform.

On 14 December 2021, the UK Government published a consultation on Human Rights Act Reform (this link will take you away from our website). The consultation paper follows the publication of a report by the Independent Human Rights Act Review, which the ALLIANCE contributed to.

The consultation paper sets out plans for how the UK Government wants to replace the Human Rights Act with a UK Bill of Rights.

There is concern that the consultation proposals set out a worrying shift in the human rights landscape and will weaken the ability of people to claim their rights.

Since its enactment, the Human Rights Act has had a powerful impact on the lives of everyday people. Changes to human rights law at a UK level would have a direct impact on the lives of people in Scotland. There is substantial concern about the extent to which reform of the Human Rights Act could impact upon the ongoing human rights work and commitments to international conventions across the Scottish policy landscape.

To protect, uphold and fulfil the rights of disabled people, people living with long term conditions and unpaid carers, it is vital that the journey towards embedding human rights is not disturbed, or the progress that has already been made become undone.

It is important that as many people as possible respond to the consultation paper to ensure that their voices are heard before any decisions are made about their rights. We have outlined information below on how to respond to the consultation.

Responding to the consultation

The ALLIANCE is preparing a response to the consultation. We want to ensure that the voices of people with lived experience are represented, heard and amplified. If you would like to contribute your views, you can email gillian.mcelroy@alliance-scotland.org.uk by Tuesday 1 March 2022.

The British Institute of Human Rights have produced helpful resources and guidance to support people to respond to the consultation:

The deadline for responding is Tuesday 8 March 2022 at 11.59pm.

Further reading

The British Institute of Human Rights have created helpful explainers on Human Rights Act Reform (this link will take you away from our website).

Read the ALLIANCE response to the Independent Human Rights Act Review.

The ALLIANCE was also a co-signatory of the response submitted by the Human Rights Consortium Scotland, of which we are an active member (this link will take you away from our website).

On Human Rights Day, the ALLIANCE co-signed a letter urging the Prime Minister to safeguard our human rights.

End of page.

You may also like:

Back to all news