Reform of the Office of the Children's Commissioner: draft legislation

Human Rights Joint Committee - Sixth Report
Reform of the Office of the Children's Commissioner: draft legislation

Here you can browse the report together with the Proceedings of the Committee. The published report was ordered by the House of Lords and the House of Commons to be printed 4 December 2012.

Contents

The Office of the Children's Commissioner

The Dunford Review recommendations

Government response to the Dunford Review

Our scrutiny of the draft clauses

Relevant international human rights standards

The information provided by the Department

A significant human rights enhancing measure

Public sector duty

2 Mandate

The primary function: promoting and protecting children's rights

Which "rights of children"?

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

The Optional Protocols to the UNCRC

Other relevant international human rights instruments

Children's rights in domestic law

Recommended amendments to proposed new s. 2A Children Act 2004

Monitoring implementation of UNCRC

Raising awareness and understanding of children's rights

Title

3 Power

The Government's approach

No power to hear individual complaints

Power to advise on how to act compatibly with children's rights

Power to investigate

Power to initiate and intervene in legal proceedings

Private providers

4 Independence and accountability

The Government's approach in the draft clauses

Independence from Government

Financial control and independence

Government requests for Commissioner's advice

Website and premises

Engagement with Parliament

Advising Parliament

Parliamentary debates on the Commissioner's reports

Appointment and removal

5 Devolution

Conclusions and recommendations

Formal Minutes

Declaration of Lords' Interests

Witnesses

List of written evidence published on the Internet

List of Reports from the Committee during the current Parliament