What now for deprivations of liberty?
What will the effect of the postponement of the Liberty Protections Safeguards be on local authorities? Local Government Lawyer asked 50 adult social care lawyers for their views on the potential consequences.
SPOTLIGHT |
SPOTLIGHT |
More than three quarters (76%) of people working in health and care who responded to a call for evidence told the British Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) that during COVID-19 they were not provided with legal training or clear information about upholding human rights law.
The BIHR research, which was published last month and has been submitted to an inquiry being carried out by Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights, also found that:
The BIHR also submitted evidence from people with care and support needs, families, friends and carers. This found that:
Sanchita Hosali, Director of the British Institute of Human Rights, said: “During COVID-19 we’ve heard the line ‘this virus does not discriminate’ many times; our research shows that the reality of the government’s pandemic response has been very different. People with care and support needs are on the sharp end of decisions to change, restrict and deny access to medical treatments, as well as the very basic things that we all need to live well, especially in these most difficult of times.
“Almost 1 in 10 people told us they had experienced pressure or use of Do Not Resuscitate Orders, 50% of staff in health, care and social work felt people were being discriminated against because of they have care and support needs, and more than 50% of advocates and community groups said there was no clarity about what laws were being used to enable these drastic cuts to people’s care.”
Hosali added: “These have been unprecedented times, but times in which people and their human rights must be front and centre. Human rights must guide the COVID-19 response, an essential warning system to show who is most at risk, and a framework for making the difficult decisions. Having supported over a 1000 people across the UK since April we know that too few know and advocate for their human rights as legal standards that not only should, but must, be abided by. Yet, this same work also shows that when people and staff use human rights in these difficult times, they can challenge the inequalities in service delivery, practices and policies that put people at risk.
“There are calls for inquiries, and accountability must be ensured. But more than this, the pandemic has exposed further how poor law, policy and practice means some lives are deemed less worthy. It is not enough to look back and say that was wrong; we must look for change now and in the coming months; there must be immediate change. If we truly believe in dignity and respect, then the human rights principles of lawful, legitimate, proportionate and non-discriminatory must guide the response to, and recovery, from this pandemic.”