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NIHRC response to the Department of Health’s consultation on legislative options for an adult protection bill in Northern Ireland.

NIHRC response to the Department of Health’s consultation on legislative options for an adult protection bill in Northern Ireland.

Date produced April 2021.

Below is a summary of the recommendations.

The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC):

2.11 recommends that the scope of the definition of ‘an adult at risk and in need of protection’ be drafted broadly to ensure appropriate and effective safeguards to prevent abuse, neglect and exploitation, while respecting an individual’s dignity and right to private life.

3.4 recommends that the human rights based framework operates in line with a human rights-based approach, adopting and benchmarking against the FREDA principles.

3.6 recommends that it is made explicit that the principles guiding the implementation of future legislation operate within a human rights based framework which incorporates the full range of international human rights standards ratified by the UK.

3.8 recommends that adequate resources are allocated to ensure that people with powers and duties under proposed adult protection legislation are trained so that they understand the human rights implications of their work and operate consistently within a human rights-based approach.

4.13 recommends that there is a statutory duty to report to the HSC Trust when there is reasonable cause to suspect that there is an adult in need of protection.

4.14 recommends that there is a statutory duty on the HSC Trust to make follow up enquiries where it has reasonable cause to suspect that an adult is at risk and in need of protection.

5.7 recommends that there should be a power of entry to interview an adult in private when a HSC professional has reasonable cause to suspect that an adult is at risk of harm from abuse, neglect or exploitation and is in need of protection. The exercise of the power should be based on an individual assessment adopting a human rights-based approach.

6.7 recommends that the Department draws on experiences from England, Wales and Scotland in providing for an independent advocate in future adult protection legislation.

6.8 recommends that any independent advocacy provisions take account of the Mental Capacity Act (NI) 2016 to ensure that individuals with and without capacity are offered equivalent protections.

7.4 recommends that an independent adult protection board be established, where one of its functions is to investigate serious cases. The board should ensure that its investigations are carried out in a manner consistent with Article 2 of the ECHR including that they are independent, prompt with reasonable expedition, and involve public scrutiny and the participation of the next-of-kin.

8.6 recommends that any provisions relating to the cooperation, information sharing and power to access financial records are accompanied by effective safeguards circumscribing how the information can be retained and used in accordance with Article 8 ECHR. Any exercise of powers under these provisions should follow a human rights based approach.

9.2 supports the introduction of new ‘care worker’ and ‘care provider’ offences of ill treatment and wilful neglect, to address this gap in the law so that individuals being cared for with capacity are also protected from ill-treatment and/or wilful neglect.