Lib Dem conference motion defends the Human Rights Act

Brighton and Hove Lib Dems are proposing a motion in defence of the Human Rights Act at the national Lib Dem conference in Glasgow.

The motion proposed by Dr Julian Huppert, the MP for Cambridge, is summated by Brian Stone, the Chair of Brighton and Hove Lib Dems.

The motion calls on the party to recommit to retaining the Human Rights Act, introduced in 1998.

Brian Stone said:

“The Tories have a strong agenda to get rid of the Human Rights Act, and water it down into a weaker ‘British Bill of Rights.”

“But this motion seeks to make clear the Act that has helped so many individuals in their fight against the state and we will not allow them to take that away without a fight. We are very hopeful that the motion will be passed with a strong majority.”

 

The motion will be debated on Wednesday, September 18, the day of Nick Clegg’s the leaders speech.

Motion F41, reads:  

Conference believes:

A.     That Britain has a proud history of international leadership on Human Rights, using our political leadership and legal expertise to drive the creation of the European Convention on Human Rights in 1950.

B.     British leadership on Human Rights is as important now as it has ever been with worrying cases such as the imprisonment of Pussy Riot in Russia, the segregation of Roma Gypsy children in parts of Europe, the rise in Human Trafficking and the continued trampling of basic freedoms of individuals across the globe.

C.     Human Rights are fundamental to a fair, free and open society.

D.     All Governments should be bound by rights legislation and rights legislation should be entrenched in a written constitution.

Conference welcomes:

I.       Nick Clegg’s statement that “the Human Rights Act is here to stay” while Liberal Democrats are in Government.

II.      The Coalition’s commitment to “be strong in the defence of freedom” and “implement a full programme of measures to reverse the substantial erosion of civil liberties and roll back state intrusion”.

III.     The UK-led Brighton Declaration, which will help to reduce the backlog of cases at the Strasbourg court and to allow the court to operate more effectively.

IV.     That members of the Government’s ‘Commission on a Bill of Rights’ did agree that any new human rights legislation must provide at least the same level of protection for our freedoms and rights as the existing Human Rights Act and European Convention on Human Rights.

V.      That the Human Rights Act is a vital lifeline for citizens who have been unfairly treated and was responsible for:

a.      Ensuring that Gary McKinnon was not unjustly extradited to the United States.

b.      Stopping blanket DNA retention.

c.      Preventing councils from snooping on citizens.

d.      Stopping the degrading treatment of vulnerable people in the NHS.

e.      Securing accommodation for domestic violence victims.

f.       Ensuring that fostered children can visit their mentally disabled parents.

g.      Defending the right of couples to be accommodated together in residential care homes.

h.      Protecting transport service for disabled people.

VI.    The introduction by the Foreign Office of a new presumption that known human rights abusers should not be granted permission to enter the UK.

Conference however regrets:

a     That the Government’s ‘Commission on a Bill of Rights’ failed to reach a unanimous agreement.

b     The ongoing political debate surrounding rights legislation, which reflects widespread misunderstanding about the origins, aims and effects of the Human Rights Act.

c     That politicians from both the Labour and Conservative parties continually portray Human Rights legislation as a “villains’ charter” which has done “way more damage than good”.

d     That the existing process for taking an appeal from the UK courts to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is cumbersome and has led to long delays, contributing to a view that Human Rights themselves are to blame.

e     That the public image of the Human Rights Act as nothing but a tool for terrorists, criminals and trouble-makers has been left unchallenged by some politicians and media outlets.

Conference therefore calls for:

1. The Human Rights Act to be retained.
2. The British Government to continue to work with European partners to reform the process through which the European Convention on Human Rights is administered, to ensure that frustrating delays, like in the case of Abu Qatada, are prevented in future.
3. The UK to remain a prominent signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights so that rights legislation is entrenched throughout Europe.
4. Liberal Democrats in Government to stand firm against the Conservative Party in defence of the Human Rights Act and European Convention on Human Rights.
5. A constitutional convention to draw up a UK Bill of Rights as part of a wider written constitution, which will include:
6. Full involvement of the devolved administrations.
7. Cross-party negotiations.
8. The incorporation of the Human Rights Act and every protection contained therein.
9. Continued support for the European Convention on Human Rights.