Human Rights

The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) today issued a set of minimum requirements for conditions of detention in European prisons, concerned by the negative effects of pre-existing austerity measures in certain states, which could be exacerbated by the Covid-19 p

The Council of Europe’s HELP programme (Human rights Education for Legal Professionals) has launched a new online course on the environment and human rights. The six-hour course, which is available free of charge via the HELP online platform, has been developed by experts on the European Conve

The Scottish Human Rights Commission has set out the concerns and obligations that must be considered by the Scottish government in any moves to introduce so-called "vaccine passports". In a new briefing, the commission also makes nine recommendations to the government on how to proceed on Covi

Plans to incorporate human rights treaties into Scots law have been announced by Equalities Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville. Subject to the outcome of May's Holyrood election, a new Human Rights Bill will incorporate four United Nations human rights treaties into Scots law, including legislat

The Scottish Human Rights Commission has welcomed the passing of the Redress for Survivors (Historical Child Abuse in Care) (Scotland) Act at Holyrood. The legislation creates a new independent body, Redress Scotland, to administer a scheme making financial payments to survivors of historical child

The Scottish Human Rights Commission has warned of potential risks to the protection of people’s rights in Scotland as a result of the UK government’s latest review of the Human Rights Act. In evidence submitted to the review, the commission detailed its concern that changes being consid

Concerns for the prison population have been raised by the Scottish Human Rights Commission. Writing to the Justice Secretary, Humza Yousaf, the SHRC sought assurances that measures will be taken to deal with the rising prison population.

The UK government's review of the Human Rights Act has launched a call for evidence. The review will consider how the act is working in practice and whether any change is needed.

UK measures to avoid complicity in forced labour in China must be extended, human rights campaigners have said. Responding to the announcement from the Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab that companies will have to meet requirements showing their supply chains are free from forced labour in the Xinjiang

JUSTICE Scotland’s Annual Human Rights Day Lecture will return on 21 January 2021 with a discussion on the Human Rights Act. Twenty years of the Human Rights Act: a Scottish Perspective will feature a panel of four top speakers, chaired by Lord Hodge, Deputy President of the Supreme Court.

A doctor dedicated to helping people in war-torn Sri Lanka, a performer reaching out to those battling addiction and a humanitarian bringing the latest cancer therapies to the developing world, are all in the running for this year's Robert Burns Humanitarian Award (RBHA). The winner will be announc

The Chinese government is to revoke the licences of human rights lawyers hired to help protestors in Hong Kong who were arrested as they attempted to flee to Taiwan last August. A Chinese court sentenced 10 of the protestors to prison terms ranging from seven months to two years after they were conv

A former lawyer who used social media to report from Wuhan following the first outbreak of Covid-19 last February has been jailed for four years for "picking quarrels and provoking trouble". Zhang Zhan, a 37-year-old human rights activist who was also detained in 2019 for speaking in support of anti

Major changes to the way courts interpret the Human Rights Act are necessary so the legislation does more to protect people detained because of the expansion of police powers, a new study says. The right to liberty and security is enshrined in article 5 of the act and was intended to refer to arrest

Pinsent Masons trainee Poppy Mulligan has been awarded the Champion Individual Award at the Champions of Justice Awards 2020 for her pro bono work with individuals on death row.