Publications

NIHRC Consultation Response: Submission to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Parallel Report for the Seventh Periodic Review of the United Kingdom

Date produced: January 2025

Below is a summary of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's (NIHRC) recommendations and messages.
You can also download the full document through the links provided.

Summary of recommendations

The NI Human Rights Commission recommends that:

2.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that extensive disaggregated data is collected, published and effectively monitored in NI.

2.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK conducts cumulative impact assessments to inform decisions in NI.

2.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that NI is reflected in the UK’s national action plan on business and human rights.

2.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures climate justice values are adopted in all laws and policies aimed at tackling climate change, including ensuring a focus on the specific needs of and preventative measures for individuals or communities most affected. This requires working with key stakeholders to ensure effective mitigations and monitoring to maintain good air quality, pollution free water ways and to prevent future flooding events in NI.

3.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that NI is adequately funded, utilising a needs-based approach.

4.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK takes steps to satisfy itself and the United Nations that the NIHRC has adequate and secure long-term funding that is sufficient to fulfil its statutory functions and ensure its compliance with the UN Paris Principles.

4.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK fulfils its commitment to a Bill of Rights for NI.

4.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures the delivery of effective training on Windsor Framework Article 2 to all relevant officials and that guidance on policy and legislative development is swiftly updated.

4.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK establishes a comprehensive notification process to identify any amendment, repeal or restatement of laws pursuant to the 2023 Act, relevant to Windsor Framework Article 2.

4.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures the fundamental principles of human rights are adhered to and any reform to the UK’s human rights framework does not weaken human rights protections, but builds on the Human Rights Act 1998.

5.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• consolidates, strengthens and clarifies equality protections in NI within a Single Equality Act, which includes intersectional multiple discrimination, as required by the EU Pay Transparency Directive;
• ensures that up-to-date robust, gender-sensitive, culturally appropriate equality-related strategies and action plans with ring-fenced funding are developed promptly and thereafter implemented and monitored in NI; and
• enacts legislation to amend NI law to ensure it keeps pace with those provisions of EU directives on standards for equality bodies pursuant to Articles 2 and 13 of the Windsor Framework in line with transposition deadline, 29 June 2026.

5.2 The NIHRC recommends that instead of a piecemeal approach in NI that the UK promptly develops, implements and monitors robust hate crime legislation in NI, guided by the Independent Hate Crime Review Team’s recommendations.

5.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK repeals the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act 2024 and provides access to status determination mechanisms for people seeking asylum, refugees and stateless persons to help ensure that they have their claims processed expeditiously and that individuals granted protection are able to integrate effectively.

6.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• ensures that the gender pay gap and insecure, low-paid employment of women in NI is effectively addressed and monitored. This includes requiring employers to publish a narrative with their gender pay gap data that is evaluated through a gender budgeting lens; and
• brings forward legislation to amend NI law to ensure it keeps pace with relevant provisions of the EU Pay Transparency Directive that amend and/or replace provisions of the EU Gender Equality (Employment) Directive.

6.2 The NIHRC recommends that the NI Executive adopts a gender-sensitive approach to policy making in NI, including by embedding gender budgeting within law and policy making in NI.

7.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK removes its reservation against Article 6 of the UN ICESCR and reviews its work-related restrictions placed on people seeking asylum in NI while their claims are being processed.

7.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK takes concrete steps to tackle the low employment rate for d/Deaf and disabled people in NI.

7.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK promptly amends the Rehabilitation of Offenders (NI) Order 1978 to enable an offender to be rehabilitated if their circumstances satisfy the criteria for compliance with Article 8 of the ECHR. This includes ensuring an effective review mechanism is operational.

7.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that all migrant workers in NI are protected against exploitation and abuse and enjoy the same conditions as other workers in NI. This includes having effective access to complaint mechanisms, interpretation services, legal assistance and access to effective remedies without fear of reprisal, deportation or detention. Furthermore, the conditions of migrant workers in NI should be effectively monitored, including by regularly collecting and disseminating all relevant, disaggregated data.

7.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that all victims of modern slavery and human trafficking in NI are able to access specialist support services, appropriately tailored to take account of age, gender and culture, regardless of how they came to enter the UK.

8.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that social security is accessible, promptly available in NI, and that maximum available resources are used to guarantee an adequate standard of living to all recipients, which is guided by a cumulative impact assessment that is monitored regularly. This includes ensuring that a comprehensive and secure mitigation package is applied in NI where necessary and maintained for as long as is required. It includes repealing the two-child tax limit, making separate Universal Credit payments the primary option, remedying the five-week wait for Universal Credit, and promptly remedying accessibility and assessment issues with Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment.

8.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• provides suitable and sufficient support to families in NI to help with increasing costs associated with funerals, keeping pace with inflation, and inclusive of students, individuals without recourse, people seeking asylum and low-income families not in receipt of a qualifying benefit; and
• extends Bereavement Support Payments to co-habitees without dependent children, including in NI.

9.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that childcare facilities and arrangements in NI are available, affordable and accessible. This includes that a flexible and accessible childcare model is in place in NI that operates outside traditional working hours. It also includes introducing statutory arrangements in NI to deliver extended, affordable, responsive, high-quality provision of early education and care initiatives for families with children, using the provision available in other parts of the UK as a starting point.

9.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK Government ensures that Bereavement Benefits (Remedial) Order 2023 is fully retrospective to February 2016 for the families who made claims based on the High Court of Justice in NI’s judgment.

9.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK develops and implements minimum standards of foster care without further delay and introduces a statutory requirement for foster care to be inspected in NI.

9.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• expeditiously repeals all legal provisions permitting the marriage of children in NI and increases the minimum age for marriage to 18 years for all children in NI; and
• strengthens efforts to combat forced marriages in NI, such as sensitising parents on the need for full and free consent to marry.

9.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that there are specialised, accessible, gender-sensitive support and services for victims and survivors of domestic and sexual violence and abuse with guaranteed sustainable funding. This includes support to assist victims and survivors to navigate and exit from paramilitary linked coercive control. Such support should be available regardless of immigration status. Steps taken should be guided by disaggregated data and meaningful engagement with victims, survivors and representative organisations. This includes ensuring that there are sufficient refuge places available in NI for individuals that are accessible at the point of need.

9.6 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• promptly introduces a freestanding offence in NI where an individual, who has the care of another individual by virtue of being a care worker, ill-treats or wilfully neglects that individual; and
• ensures that findings from investigations into human rights abuses in care settings in NI are addressed immediately and fully remedied, and put effective complaints mechanisms in place, which is accessible and monitored to ensure that such breaches do not recur in the future.

9.7 The NIHRC recommends that the UK adopts the recommendations from the COVID-19 Inquiry in relation to the management of the pandemic in care homes, ensuring that learning is disseminated across the sector and that a human rights-based plan is in place for any future public health emergency or pandemic.

9.8 The NIHRC recommends that the UK promptly develops, implements and monitors an up-to-date Carers Strategy and measurable action plan for NI, involving carers and their representative organisations at every stage of this process. This should include concrete steps for providing accessible support to unpaid carers, with consideration of specific needs, such as for young or older carers. Additionally, financial support should be provided that is proportional to additional costs for carers and the rising cost of living, including providing a proportional uplift to the Carers’ Allowance; introducing an additional carers recognition payment; introducing a young carer’s recognition payment; introducing a payment where more than one child is being cared for; and introducing a relaxation of the earnings rules which when exceeded, end entitlement to benefit.

10.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK promptly develops, implements, monitors and adequately resources an anti-poverty strategy and up-to-date fuel poverty strategy for NI, with a measurable action plan and adequate long-term resources, that is guided by meaningful engagement with affected individuals and their representative organisations at every stage of the process. The anti-poverty strategy should contain specific actions to eradicate child poverty in NI, including by establishing concrete and time-limited targets with measurable indicators, and regular monitoring and reporting on the reduction of child poverty in NI.

10.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK takes concrete steps to provide the necessary financial support, debt relief and education to ensure individuals in NI are financially resilient and not at risk from illegal lenders. This includes supporting individuals in NI to safely extract themselves from illegal lending and to prosecute the illegal lenders.

10.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK takes steps to ensure that there is food security in NI, including promptly developing, implementing and monitoring a rights-based strategy for the protection of the right to adequate and good quality food and the promotion of healthy diets in NI. Such measures should consider and reasonably accommodate food allergies and intolerances. Also, measures should ensure that Free School Meals are consistently available during school holidays and can be fully accessed by children in NI as required.

10.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK places the Crisis Fund on a permanent footing, with guaranteed funding, while addressing the causes of destitution in the first instance, rather than rely on a discretionary fund to address destitution when it emerges. This includes introducing measures to guarantee targeted support to all individuals living in poverty or at risk of poverty, including people seeking asylum, refugees, migrants and other groups at particular risk.

10.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that the level of financial support provided to people seeking asylum reflects the cost of living across the UK and that no individual in NI is exposed to destitution.

10.6 The NIHRC recommends that the UK addresses overcrowding in housing in NI, including by tackling discrimination against minority ethnic communities in private rental markets. This should include putting safeguards in place to regulate and ensure non-discrimination within private rental markets.

10.7 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• eliminates all forms of homelessness in NI. This includes working with representative organisations and housing support organisations to identify effective early intervention models and to address the causes and effects of homelessness, particularly from a gender-sensitive perspective;
• identifies and addresses factors contributing to deaths of homeless individuals in NI, particularly of rough sleepers; and

• ensures that homelessness is not criminalised in NI, including through promptly repealing NI-applicable provisions of the Vagrancy Act 1824 and the Vagrancy (Ireland) Act 1847.

10.8 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• ensures that there is sufficient and appropriate long-term social housing available to meet demand in NI, including mitigating measures to address existing waiting lists;

• revises the housing selection scheme in NI to ensure that it effectively considers applicants’ circumstances and reflects up-to-date common challenges faced by individuals and households in NI, in addition to providing adequate mechanisms for appeal; and
• promptly, robustly and collaboratively eradicates paramilitary and sectarian intimidation that causes families to be forced out of their homes in NI. This includes actively monitoring the situation by ensuring that comprehensive equality data on housing in NI is regularly gathered, monitored, evaluated and published.

10.10 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that:

• the support and accommodation provided to refugees and people seeking asylum in NI is urgently reviewed to ensure it is adequate, fit for purpose and culturally appropriate. This includes the adoption of a realistic, long-term strategy aimed at expeditiously ending the use of the ‘contingency’ asylum accommodation model in NI, particularly for families with children and people with specific needs; and
• the transition from Home Office accommodation to “move on” accommodation for people who receive refugee status is co-ordinated and as undisruptive as possible, particularly where children are affected.

10.11 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that it is recognising and facilitating the cultural rights of Travellers in NI to live their traditional lifestyle. This includes ensuring that there is sufficient Traveller-specific accommodation available in NI with sufficient access to essential utilities on a long-term basis and ensures that the Unauthorised Encampments (NI) Order 2005 is promptly repealed.

11.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK identifies and minimises procedural barriers to all migrants and people seeking asylum accessing healthcare. This includes introducing guidance for healthcare professionals on providing effective access.

11.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that:

• sufficient, long-term, ring-fenced funding is available and fully utilised to maintain consistent and stable abortion services in line with the Abortion (NI) Regulations in every Health and Social Care Trust area in NI and the necessary funding for abortion services in NI is an addition to the Department of Health NI’s broader budget;
• telemedicine is an option for early medical abortions in NI under certain circumstances, as in other parts of the UK, and provides a clear pathway to care and after care for telemedicine abortions, including for individuals using unregistered sources; and
• comprehensive, regional guidance on conscientious objection in relation to abortion in NI is introduced.

11.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that the gender recognition process in NI is amended to reflect the self-declaration model. This process should be affordable, respectful and accessible, including effectively training staff and professionals across an individual’s gender recognition journey and that that transgender children are supported effectively and that the best interests of the child are the primary consideration.

11.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• immediately develops, implements and monitors a targeted, measurable and appropriately financed plan of action aimed at eradicating unreasonable waiting times in NI, and eliminating barriers in access to healthcare and services in NI. This includes ensuring that resources and finances available are ring-fenced and sufficient to satisfy need on a long-term basis and ensure effective communication with patients. This also includes ensuring consideration of specific needs, such as gender, age, disability, race or ethnicity, and rurality; and
• promptly and fully addresses the backlog regarding mental healthcare waiting lists in NI and that long-term measures with ring-fenced funding and robust monitoring are in place to ensure that mental healthcare services and support are expeditiously available to all in NI, as required. This includes consideration of the specific needs of specialised services such as Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and support for suicide prevention.

11.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures perimenopausal and menopausal women in NI have equal access to employment throughout their working life, and ensure perimenopausal and menopausal women in NI have access to medication and treatments on a long-term and affordable basis.

11.6 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures provision for free period products in NI is as wide as possible to avoid divergence in access, for example, places of detention and civil society organisations that provide essential public services should be included. Steps should be taken to ensure provision does not become an undue burden on the organisations and premises affected in NI. Also, that period poverty levels in NI are effectively monitored and comprehensive disaggregated data is disseminated to identify potential gaps. Additionally, ensures that period products that are not free are not inaccessibly priced and are fully accessible in NI.

12.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK promptly introduces a non-selective system of post-primary school admission and that the two-tier system of education in NI is abolished. This process should be undertaken through meaningful consultation with schools, parents, guardians, carers and children.

12.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK implements targeted measures to address bullying, including cyberbullying, on the grounds of race, sexual orientation, gender identity or sex characteristics, disability, migration or other status in all NI schools. This includes ensuring that children, all teachers and other education providers are trained on how to identify, address and remedy the effects of bullying.

12.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• ensures that all children seeking asylum and children from migrant families in NI have timely access to education and other necessary supports, such as language classes, uniform grants, school meals and transport; and
• reviews the curriculum, initial teacher education and in-service professional development to ensure sufficient representation and awareness of racial, ethnic and cultural diversities across education in NI. This includes meaningful consultation with parents, guardians, children and representative organisations at every stage of the process.

12.4 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that educational underachievement in NI is addressed, including a focus on addressing inequalities for Traveller and Roma children.

12.5 The NIHRC recommends that the UK fully utilises the Integrated Education Act 2022 and promptly takes action to ensure integrated education provision in NI meets demand, including providing the necessary support for schools that self-nominate to transition to an integrated school.

12.6 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that long-term, secure funding for shared education is guaranteed in NI. This includes ensuring that any potential negative effect on funding of shared education due to the UK leaving the EU will be adequately and appropriately mitigated.

12.7 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• considers the recommendations from the UN CRC Committee and rulings from the ECtHR concerning the provision of withdrawal from relationships and sexuality education in NI and puts in place ongoing arrangements to monitor the effectiveness of the Relationships and Sexuality Education (NI) (Amendment) Regulations 2023. This includes the collection and publication of disaggregated data on opt-outs in NI, which also aims to provide insight into the reasons for the withdrawals; and

• develops a strategy for NI that aims to raise awareness of the benefits of holistic relationships and sexuality education and to address any myths or misconceptions relating to the provision of relationships and sexuality education that may increase the likelihood of parental withdrawal. This includes developing measures to mitigate against the adverse effects of children and young people in NI being withdrawn from relationships and sexuality education.

12.8 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that:

• the necessary revised Special Educational Needs Regulations and Code of Practice for NI are progressed as a matter of priority and ensure that the transformation of special education needs services in NI is robust, adequately funded and effectively implemented as a matter of priority;
• targets for delivery are set and monitored, prioritising children’s needs and requisite support, including education, transport and other measures to ensure effective educational engagement and improve children’s outcomes; and
• that children with special educational needs in NI that have been adversely affected by past failings of the assessment process are effectively remedied.

13.1 The NIHRC recommends that the UK protects, promotes and progresses minority language and culture in NI, particularly regarding Irish language and Ulster Scots culture and heritage. This includes undertaking meaningful engagement with minorities and their representative organisations in NI.

13.2 The NIHRC recommends that the UK:

• adopts a concrete plan of action, with resources and measurable objectives, to implement legislation, regulation and standardisation to ensure that everyone has access to inclusive participation in all sports facilities and sufficient support for recreational activities, in line with promoting independent living. This includes accommodating and providing specific measures as required, for example, for persons with disabilities or members of racial or ethnic minority communities; and
• ensures individuals who wish to participate in sport in NI are supported to do so guided by the principles of reasonableness, proportionality and non-discrimination.

13.3 The NIHRC recommends that the UK ensures that the arts sector in NI receives sufficient, secure, long-term funding that is proportional to inflation.

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