Human rights body 'needs more respect' from UK

Northern Ireland’s Human Rights Commission needs more money, additional powers and better support from Whitehall if it is to operate effectively, a parliamentary committee reported today.

Under-resourcing had jeopardised both the commission’s independence and its ability to carry out the tasks given it in the Good Friday Agreement, said the report from the Joint Commons and Lords Committee on Human Rights.

Among the new powers the committee recommended the commission should be granted were the right to search premises – including “places of detention” - as part of its investigations and the ability to compel the production of evidence necessary for its inquiries.

The report on the commission’s work in the first three years of its existence said there was evidence that Whitehall departments had not yet “come to grips” with their obligation to consult the commission on policies relevant to its work.

It recommended a memorandum of understanding between the commission and the Northern Ireland Office, setting out improved arrangements for co-operation and information exchange with government departments.

The report welcomed the recent decision to increase the commission’s core funding from an “inadequate” £750,000 (€1.07m) for the past three years to £1.3m (€1.85m) in the next two and £1.35m (€1.93m) in the third.

“Under-resourcing has jeopardised both the commission’s independence from government and its capacity to deliver on its statutory mandate,” said the committee, adding that future funding levels must be kept under continuing independent review to ensure they are adequate.

Since its establishment under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, the commission had struggled to be perceived as impartial, the committee noted.

It called on the Northern Ireland Office to consider setting up an independent commission to appoint members of the NIHRC, and to consider the appointment of commissioners from outside Northern Ireland.

Having made appointments, ministers must be robust in expressing their support for and confidence in commissioners, the committee said.

Committee chairwoman Jean Corston MP said: “Human rights commissions across the world play an essential role in fostering respect for human rights and deepening democracy.

“The NIHRC has begun to do important work but it has a difficult task and has faced many obstacles.

“With adequate resources and powers and effective and clear strategies, the commission could make an invaluable contribution to building a unified and peaceful Northern Ireland. The opportunity for it to do so should not be missed.”