Human Rights Day 2022: Help Protect our Human Rights Act

For Human Rights Day (10 December 2022) the British Institute of Human Rights have produced an easy read blog explaining how people with learning disabilities, their families and supporters can help to protect our Human Rights Act.

What has happened so far?

	In 2020, the UK Government asked a team of experts to tell them if the Human Rights Act was working well.
	The British Institute of Human Rights has made an Easy Read guide with lots of information about our Human Rights Act and how it works. Click here to read it.
	The team asked lots of people what they thought about the Human Rights Act. They wrote a report saying what they found out.
	In December 2021, the UK Government shared a plan to get rid of the Human Rights Act and replace it with a Bill of Rights
	On the 22^nd of June 2022, the Government shared this new Bill of Rights in Parliament and the public.
	More than 12,000 people and organisations told the Government what they thought about a new Bill of Rights.
	Most people said the law did not need to change and thought a new Bill of Rights was a bad idea.
	The Joint Committee on Human Rights in the UK Parliament has also said there is no need to make a new Bill of Rights.
	The UK Government has decided to go ahead with their Bill of Rights even though most people do not want it.
	Lots of people are saying that the new Bill of Rights should be called the Rights Removal Bill instead. This is because we think it will take away, or remove, our rights.
	The British Institute of Human Rights has written an Easy Read Guide to the Bill of Rights. You can read it on our website.
Why our Human Rights Act matters to people with learning disabilities, their families and supporters. This is Susan’s Story.
	Susan was a woman with learning disabilities. She had a fall and was taken to the hospital.
	Susan had a doll which she loved and she took it to the hospital with her. Susan’s family found the doll broken on the floor of the hospital.
	Susan was very upset because the doll was very important to her. It being broken really hurt Susan’s mental health.
	Susan’s family believed that the doll had been broken on purpose to punish Susan for not doing as she was told.
	The hospital refused to say sorry and would not investigate what had happened to Susan.
	Susan’s family contacted lawyers who helped them to argue that her treatment was inhuman and degrading. This means it caused her serious harm.
	Article 3 of the Human Rights Act means that you have a right to be treated in a way that causes you serious harm.
	The Human Rights Act protected Susan and made sure the hospital helped her to move back home. There was also an investigation to make sure it didn’t happen again.
How disabled people, their families and supporters can help
	At BIHR, we are very worried that the Rights Removal Bill will mean that people’s rights are not looked after more often, and things will not be put right when that happens.
	If you are worried too, there are some ways you can help.
	We have written an Easy Read letter template that you can send to your MP. You can download it from our website here
	The letter is asking your MP to support the Human Rights Act and stand up for our Human Rights.
	You can also talk to your friends and family about the why our Human Rights Act is important and why we are worried about a Rights Removal Bill.
	Talking is helpful because if more people know about why keeping our Human Rights Act is important, we can be more powerful together.
	To find out more about the Human Rights Act and how it helps in our day to day lives, you can read our accessible post cards. The postcards can be found here
	You can also help by keeping yourself as up to date as possible on what is happening.
	At the British Institute of Human Rights, we share lots of news about the Bill and how you can help to stop it.
	Click here to join our news mailing list Click here to follow us on twitter Click here to follow us on Facebook Thank you all for working with British Institute of Human Rights to protect our Human Rights Act.

Scottish Commission for People with Learning Disabilities