GDA Response to Scottish Government’s ‘A Human Rights Bill for Scotland’ Consultation

Read our response here: https://gda.scot/resources/gda-response-to-scottish-governments-a-human-rights-bill-for-scotland-consultation/

We strongly support the incorporation of all of our international human
rights treaties, in particular the UNCRPD, into Scots Law. Building a
framework of strong rights, duties and accountability, with adequate and
meaningful access to justice, is a vital step to stop the decimation of
disabled people’s human rights that has been called a “human
catastrophe” by the UN itself.

We welcome the long-awaited consultation on the Bill as a step towards
human rights law in Scotland and following through on the commitment
to enshrine UNCRPD into Scots Law, made in the last parliamentary
session.

As outlined in our response, while we welcome many of the proposals within the
bill, we have concerns about the limits within the current proposals to
protect disabled people’s human rights. In particular, the model of
incorporation needs to place a stronger duty to comply on as many
rights of possible within the UNCRPD.

At present, the lack of regard or legal duty placed on articles within special treaties such as the
UNCRPD, UNCERD or UNCEDAW is incredibly disappointing for GDA members and disabled people in Scotland.

The model of incorporation must place a stronger duty to comply on as
many rights as possible, within devolution limits. GDA members have
emphasised that the duty to comply must be applied to standalone rights
within the UNCRPD, where it is within devolution limits. In particular,
Article 19, The Right to Independent Living, must be included within the
new legislation with a legal duty to comply. This is vital to prevent further
disabled people having their human rights consistently broken and
violated.

This response is the result of a large GDA members’ hybrid event, held
in September 2023, bringing together 120+ disabled people online and
in person, aged 20 to 90, as well as our intersectional LGBTQ+ and
BAME networks, to discuss the proposals for a Human Rights Bill in
Scotland. In total, 150+ disabled people were involved.

This response also draws on GDA’s significant experience of dialogue
with disabled people over two decades, including members representing
the views and experiences of younger disabled people, BAME disabled
people and LGBTQ+ disabled people.