Bill of Rights Forum report handover
Forum report a milestone in delivering a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland
(Members of the Bill of Rights Forum discuss the content of their report)
The Human Rights Consortium welcomed the publication today (31st March) of the findings of the Bill of Rights Forum as a key milestone in the process of delivering a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland.
The Forum, which was set up by the NIO to bring political parties and civic society together to discuss recommendations on what rights should be included in a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland, has submitted the report of its deliberations to the Human Rights Commission who are statutorily responsible for advising the Secretary of State on the final detail of a Bill of Rights.
Chairperson of the Consortium, Fiona McCausland said:
“The key reason why the Consortium campaigned for so long for a Forum on the Bill of Rights was to try to address the lack of political engagement in the Bill of Rights process. For a year now, politicians and members of civic society have been sitting around the one table debating and discussing the type of rights that should be protected in a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland.
So this has been a very positive stage in the creation of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. Today’s end-product is the result of many months of hard work and commitment from all involved and provides a good platform from which the process can continue.
We do have concerns over the lack of public engagement during what was a very important stage of the Bill of Rights process. A Bill of Rights needs public ownership and as such the Forum should have consulted with everyone in Northern Ireland during its deliberations. This has not been achieved and we would encourage the NIHRC and the government to engage in a process of raising public awareness and participation in the development of a Bill of Rights during this next important phase.
Today’s handover marks the beginning of the next phase of the process, in which the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission will be responsible for developing its own recommendations based on this report and presenting them to the Secretary of State.
I look forward to seeing what developments the next phase of the process brings and hope that the positive engagement that existed on the Forum can continue throughout the rest of the development of a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland.”
A copy of the report can be found in the Useful Resources page