Alastair Pringle, Executive Director of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, responds to the report from the National Taskforce on Human Rights Leadership which has published recommendations on incorporating international human rights treaties into Scots law.
We have been glad to be part of the National Taskforce on Human Rights Leadership, where we have spent the last two years talking about the feasibility and desirability of progressing human rights in Scotland.
It has been a pleasure to be part of the discussions leading to these recommendations which take forward our longstanding position that these important international treaties should be incorporated into domestic law to protect the rights of women and girls, disabled people and people from minority ethnic groups.
This report also makes recommendations on including economic, social, cultural and environmental rights alongside protections for older people and LGBTI people.
Today marks a very welcome step forward for Scotland in making this a reality and we are hopeful that the new Government will swiftly adopt these recommendations and take forward this new Act in the Scottish Parliament to make these human rights a reality for people in Scotland.
This is the next important step on the journey towards incorporation – a journey which will require the next Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament to work in partnership with the widest possible range of agencies, organisations and communities to realise these bold and ambitious aspirations.
