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Children's Rights Bill [HL] 2009-10

Type of Bill:
Private Members' Bill (Starting in the House of Lords)
Sponsor:
Baroness Walmsley

Progress of the Bill

Bill started in the House of Lords

  1. House of Lords
    1. 1st reading
    2. 2nd reading
    3. Committee stage
    4. Report stage
    5. 3rd reading
  2. House of Commons
    1. 1st reading
    2. 2nd reading
    3. Committee stage
    4. Report stage
    5. 3rd reading
  3. Consideration of Amendments
  4. Royal Assent

Last event

Latest Bill

House Bill Date
Lords HL Bill 8 09-10 (as introduced) | PDF version, 217KB 20.11.2009

Latest news on the Bill

First reading took place on 19 November. This stage is a formality that signals the start of the Bill's journey through the Lords.

The 2009-10 session of parliament has prorogued and this Bill will make no further progress.

Summary of the Bill

The purpose of the Children’s Rights Bill is to enshrine the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in UK law.  The UNCRC is an international human rights treaty that grants all children and young people a comprehensive set of rights. 

Issues included in the convention’s articles are: the right to be free from all forms of violence; the right to play, rest and leisure; and the right to be protected from harmful work and economic exploitation. 

The UK signed the convention on 19 April 1990, and it came into force on 15 January 1992.

Some articles of the convention are already given effect through existing legislation, for example though the Children Act 2004, and through a range of legislation on the right to education.  This Bill would make the UNCRC part of UK law.

Key areas

  • The Bill would create a duty to ensure all new legislation is compatible with the convention and is “children’s rights proofed”.
  • The interpretation of convention rights would be determined by a court or tribunal.

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Related information

Guide to the passage of a Bill

Find out what happens at each stage of a Public Bill’s journey through Parliament with the Passage of a Bill guide.

When does a Bill become law?

Explanation of what happens after Bills have been passed, and when laws may change.