Updated 11 December 2023
On 14 September 2023 the Scottish Parliament approved the motion to reconsider the Scottish Government’s UNCRC (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill, so it is now at the Reconsideration Stage for MSPs to propose amendments. On 7 December the Bill was approved at the Reconsideration Stage.
On 27 June 2023 the Scottish Government announced it will make changes to the Bill so public authorities will only have to comply with UNCRC requirements when delivering duties under powers of an Act of the Scottish Parliament, so it will not effect those areas which are outwith the Scottish Parliament's responsibility.
Parent Club has published a booklet on children's rights and how parents can support this on their website here.
Connect welcomes the Scottish Government’s commitment to incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into Scots law. It is vital that children are central to all matters concerning them, that they can defend their rights, and that their families can support them in this.
We say the UNCRC should be directly incorporated rather than rewritten, and call for more work on communicating what incorporation means, and how it will help children and families. You can read our full response to the Government's consultation here, the consultation paper here, and our overview of it here.
The Bill to make the UNCRC law was introduced to the Scottish Parliament on 1 September 2020, you can read it here. You can read our response to the Parliament's Equalities and Human Rights Committee's call for views on the Bill here.
On 16 March 2021 the Scottish Parliament voted unanimously to pass the Bill. However, the UK Government challenged this, arguing the Bill goes outside the remit of the Scottish Parliament. This was upheald by the UK Supreme Court on 6 October 2021. This means the Bill cannot become law without amendments. The Scottish Government has confirmed it remains 'committed to the incorporation of the UNCRC to the maximum extent possible as soon as practicable.' Together, the alliance for children's rights, has written a blog explaining the judgement and next steps here.
The Scottish Government published it's action plan on furthering the rights of children from 2021-24 in November 2021. While the Government is still ‘urgently and carefully' considering how to carry on with the legislation following the Supreme Court judgement, it says most of the work to implement UNCRC can still go ahead. You can read the plan here.
The Scottish Government has also publshed non-statutory guidance for embedding a children’s rights-based approach in public services. You can read this here.