Children and young people were listening intently on Tuesday 7th November 2023 as the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice answered some of their questions on the reconsideration of the UNCRC Bill. Amidst a busy schedule, members of the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee (EHRCJ) put forward questions from Members of the Children’s Parliament and Scottish Youth Parliament. This blog covers what was asked, what wasn’t and the commitments that the Cabinet Secretary made along the way.
Those of you who follow our blog will already know about last week’s evidence session on Halloween. In true spooky style, Juliet Harris, Director of Together, presented evidence using a ‘spider’s web’ analogy developed in partnership with children and young people. The analogy highlighted the differences between the UNCRC Bill as originally passed (a complete web that catches all the flies – or rights breaches!), and the amended version now proposed (a looser web that doesn’t always provide the same protection). Children have expressed a clear view that even though the amended spider’s web will have some gaps allowing some flies to get through, its mere existence will help to scare other flies away. In the same way, the amended Bill – although it has gaps – will help prevent rights breaches from arising in the first place.
Watch the spider’s web analogy here.
The Cabinet Secretary set out the value of a ‘partial web’ in her opening remarks. She emphasised that the updated Bill will add an additional layer of protection for children’s rights in certain areas while also helping to prevent rights breaches from happening and drive positive culture change through provisions like the Children’s Rights Scheme and reporting requirements.
Members of the Committee were gripped by the spider’s web analogy at last week’s session, and immediately sought Together’s support to hear more from the children and young people who had helped shape Juliet’s evidence. Members of Children’s Parliament and the Scottish Youth Parliament submitted a series of questions that they were keen to see the Committee ask the Cabinet Secretary.
Children’s engagement in the reconsideration stage
The very first question of the session was one from Arden, a Member of Children’s Parliament. This was read out by Kaukab Stewart MSP, Convenor of the Committee:
“I would love to ask how the bill will change things for children and if children are going to help implement the bill and be consulted on”
The Cabinet Secretary said it was very important to involve children and young people in the reconsideration process and that the Scottish Government was committed to engaging with children and young people. She said the Scottish Government was already working to make sure children and young people know about their rights and what to do if things go wrong. She said she would be happy to speak more with children and young people about what Scottish Government could be doing, for example through the annual cabinet meeting with children and young people.
Rachel Nicholson from the Scottish Government Legal Service added that there are several parts of the Bill that say the Scottish Government must consult with children and young people before doing something – for example when it is making guidance for implementing the Bill, creating and updating the Children’s Rights Scheme, and reporting to the Scottish Parliament.
A review of legislation – what role for children and young people?
A further question was put to the Cabinet Secretary by Maggie Chapman MSP, this time on behalf of Ellie, a member of the Scottish Youth Parliament:
“If the Scottish Government are going to be working out what laws are and aren’t within scope of the Bill, then thinking about over time, bringing some laws into scope. How will they be involving children and young people from the very beginning in ensuring they prioritise the most important laws?”
The Cabinet Secretary made a firm commitment to involve children and young people at the heart of decision-making processes regarding which laws should be brought into the scope of the UNCRC Bill. She said she would want to know of any UK Acts that children and young people thought might be contributing to greater inequality. The Cabinet Secretary said that Scottish Government needed to include children and young people in this “right from the start” and that that she was keen to put children and young people’s priorities “front and centre”.
Ellie’s question echoes a similar one raised by Together in a joint letter to the Cabinet Secretary and supported by over 40 of our members. In this letter, Together called on Scottish Government to set out a clear timetable for the review process. While the Cabinet Secretary was able to commit to the review itself, she was not able to confirm a specific timeline. Instead, she said she was keen to get it initiated “as soon as practically possible”. The Convenor requested that the Cabinet Secretary write to the Committee to set out the timeline once this has been confirmed.
Putting rights into practice
Members of the Scottish Youth Parliament had also submitted important questions around the steps Scottish Government is taking to improve information for children and young people (from Beau MSYP) and to support culture change and ensure rights are put into practice (from Olivia MSYP). While Committee members didn’t ask these questions directly on behalf of the MSYPs, they did touch on some of these issues in their own questions – perhaps prompted by having had sight of children and young people’s questions in a paper circulated to members in advance of the session.
In response to a question from Annie Wells MSP on the provision of clear information for children and young people, the Cabinet Secretary highlighted her recent open letter. In this, she updated children and young people on the changes to the Bill and Scottish Government’s ongoing commitment to uphold children’s rights to the maximum extent possible. She added that Scottish Government was committed to working with children, young people and other stakeholders on the information they need and noted the importance that this is available in a child-friendly manner.
Olivia’s question on implementation and culture change was partially reflected in questions from Paul O’Kane MSP, Maggie Chapman MSP and Kaukab Stewart MSP. The Cabinet Secretary noted that Scottish Government was already taking a variety of steps to support organisations and individuals get ready for the Bill, including: preparation of non-statutory and statutory guidance, work to develop an updated template for child rights and wellbeing impact assessments (CRWIA), funding to support the development of a new Skills & Knowledge Framework launching by summer 2024, funding for capacity-building work delivered by the Improvement Service, and work on developing child-friendly complaints processes led by SPSO. The Cabinet Secretary said she was unable to commit to sector-specific guidance but was keen to understand stakeholders’ views through ongoing conversations.
Together’s letter also called on the Cabinet Secretary to commit to extending the UNCRC Implementation Programme beyond March 2024. She was unable to commit to this, noting that this was a decision to be made through the budget process. She did, however, echo a recent conversation with MSYPs that passing the Bill “is just the beginning” and acknowledged that work to ensure it is put into practice will need to continue beyond its entry into force.
The Cabinet Secretary was clear that public authorities should embed the UNCRC into all that they do, regardless of the scope of the amended Bill or the ‘source’ of the power they are exercising. She said she would be “very concerned” if public authorities stopped taking a child rights-based approach in some areas because they knew the UNCRC’s compatibility duty won’t apply. She emphasised the importance to children that all of their rights are respected in all areas of their lives.
Scottish Government’s approach to future legislation
In response to a question from Karen Allan MSP, the Cabinet Secretary said that considerations over whether to use ‘free-standing’ provisions or to amend existing UK Acts would be “built in” to Scottish Government’s approach to future legislation. The significance of this is set out in Together’s letter – while amendments to UK Acts will not be within the scope of the UNCRC Bill, ‘free-standing’ provisions will. The Cabinet Secretary was unable to commit to minimising the use of Scottish Parliament amendments to UK Acts.
The Cabinet Secretary acknowledged calls from Together to explore whether forthcoming legislation – such as the Promise Bill and the Education Reform Bill – could provide an opportunity to expand the scope of the UNCRC Bill. The Cabinet Secretary was unable to make a commitment, saying Scottish Government lawyers would need to look at this “on a case-by-case basis”.
In response to a question from Martin Whitfield MSP about measures to ensure new legislation complies with the UNCRC, the Cabinet Secretary responded that the Bill will introduce new legal processes that apply when a Bill is introduced to the Scottish Parliament.
A final word from children
The Cabinet Secretary closed the session by thanking children and young people for their passion and patience – but also recognised the understandable frustration they were feeling due to the delays to the Bill. She reflected on calls from children and young people at the latest Cabinet Takeover to “just get on with this!”. She confirmed that the commencement period would remain 6 months, meaning that if the Bill passes before Christmas as planned, then it should enter into force by summer 2024.
Together welcomes the attention that the Committee and Cabinet Secretary have placed on children’s views and looks forward to this continuing throughout the reconsideration stage and beyond. As the next step, Together is working with partners to support children and young people to record a video sharing some of their views, thoughts and hopes for the amended Bill. Stay tuned to our website, e-newsletter and social media for updates!
Together (Scottish Alliance for Children's Rights) 