EHRC briefing on Overseas Operations Bill
Equality and Human Rights Commission
The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s has released a briefing ahead of Committee Stage of the Overseas Operations Bill on Wednesday.
Whilst it is intended to protect service personnel and veterans from vexatious claims, we are concerned that the Bill runs the risk of having a number of negative consequences, including:
- Harming the UK’s reputation as a global leader on human rights, and weakening our compliance with universal standards
- Reducing protections from harm and access to redress for victims of crimes and members of the armed forces serving abroad
- Increasing the risk of claims against the UK in the international courts
The Commission is profoundly concerned by the risk to human rights that this Bill poses. In our briefing we recommend support for amendments to the Bill which would remove the main causes of concern from a human rights point of view. We also recommend support for amendments, which, while they would not fully address our concerns, would go some way towards mitigating its most problematic consequences.
You can read the full briefing here.
