ALLIANCE responds to the Wellbeing and Sustainable Development Bill consultation
- Area of Work: Policy and Research
- Type: News Item
- Published: 12th February 2024
The response highlights the centrality of human rights to defining and ensuring wellbeing.
The ALLIANCE have responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation on a proposed Wellbeing and Sustainable Development Bill. The Scottish Government are proposing the bill as a means of improving decision making around wellbeing and sustainability, in part by further embedding the National Performance Framework within the process.
The ALLIANCE are longstanding advocates for rethinking Scotland’s approach to the economy, through embedding complementary principles such as human rights budgeting, gender budgeting, and the wellbeing economy. The current economic approach, which centres on economic growth and Gross Domestic Product (GDP), does not work for many people, nor does it necessarily correctly capture the true value of essential parts of our society such as care.
We recognise this Bill as another step towards a redefined and refocused economy. Although the focus of the Bill is on the public sector in Scotland, by defining duties with explicit reference to wellbeing and sustainable development it sets a direction of travel that could have longer term positive effects more widely. In our response, the ALLIANCE:
- Recommends that human rights be put at the centre of the definition of wellbeing.
- Recommends that the definition of sustainable development explicitly recognises the environmental, global and rights implications of decision making.
- Highlights the centrality of care to wellbeing, and further urges the adoption of a National Outcome of Care.
- Calls for a stronger public duty to work towards the National Outcomes.
- Recommends that the Bill apply as broadly as possible to all public bodies and policy areas within the scope of devolved powers.
- Recommends that the Scottish Government carefully consider the outcome of the Finance and Public Administration Committee’s inquiry into commissioners and engage with the Scottish Human Rights Commission before taking a final decision on implementing a Future Generations Commissioner.
- Suggests that, subject to the outcome of the inquiry and engagement, a Champion role may be a suitable alternative.
You can read the full consultation response via the resource links below.
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