PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER AND HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION (13 March 1998)

That this House welcomes the priority which the Government has given to incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights into domestic law and its willingness to discuss the establishment of a human rights commission or commissioner; expresses its firm belief that a statutory body will be needed from the beginning to promote awareness of the Act and to assist individuals who believe that their rights have been infringed; therefore urges the Government to consider the early appointment of a human rights commissioner with a specific remit to undertake those functions; and proposes that the commissioner should, after wide consultation, advise the Government and the proposed parliamentary human rights committee on the long-term options for a broader human rights commission and its potential relationship with existing statutory bodies.

Sponsored by:
Mr Paul Stinchcombe (Labour)