In response to a UNA-UK campaign on safeguarding human rights protections in the UK, the three main UK political parties have written to set out their positions on human rights. Earlier this year hundreds of UNA-UK supporters signed a petition calling on party leaders to champion human rights at home and abroad:
As the Universal Declaration states, human rights are "the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world" and should be above politics. They are the indispensable tools we use every day to hold our government to account ... we urge you, as leaders of the three major political parties, to commit to championing our human rights protections which uphold the "inherent dignity" of all people in the UK.
Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, replied:
I absolutely agree - our univeral human rights are extremely important and must be protected ... As you say, basic human rights for everybody should be independent of party political aims or goals ... Turning our backs on the long British tradition of upholding human rights across the world just isn't an option.
The Liberal Democrat manifesto, launched this week ahead of the general election on 7 May, pledged to retain the UK's Human Rights Act.
Leader of the Labour party, Ed Miliband, replied:
The Human Rights Act is a modern day British Bill of Rights that protects basic rights, such as a right to a fair trial, right to life and the right to privacy ... Labour's commitment to universal human rights will be at the heart of our foreign policy across the world.
The Labour manifesto has also pledged to protect the Human Rights Act.
Abigail Green, Political Correspondence Manager for the Conservatives, replied:
As you will be aware, we will be setting out our plans for the next Parliament in our Manifesto in due course. In the meantime, you can be assured of the Prime Minister's commitment to human rights.
The Conservative manifesto, launched this week, includes a pledge to scrap the Human Rights Act and replace it with a new British Bill of Rights.
A UNA-UK briefing was published alongside the petition which sets out the international legal framework for human rights and how it is incorporated into UK law - all the way from the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights through the various UN and regional treaties down to the 1998 Human Rights Act.
