Children's rights in the United Kingdom : rhetoric or practice?

Abstract

This comment explores the Condition of the Child in the United Kingdom. The purpose is to evaluate the extent of respect of children's rights in this State and to reveal whether the government's policy honours fully its commitment to the national and international legislation. The first part deals with the British policy which is known for a great quantity of laws and national service frameworks produced for the benefit of children. In fact, the state enacted a series of Acts of Parliament and each Act amends a previous one. At international level, the country ratified a regional Convention which is the European Convention on the Exercise of Children's Rights that stems directly from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Then, there is a focus on the State Reports submitted to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. The Committee welcomed the number of developments in the UK with positive implications for the protection and promotion of children's rights and encouraged the efforts of the State Party in different areas. Nevertheless, it noted that the Reports submitted by the State Party contain little information on the difficulties experienced by some children in the country. It advised the UK Government to provide additional information and statistical data on the issues that children face and even urged the outline of the strategies used in the state to prevent poverty, child abuse, neglect and abandonment. Each country has its own history and culture and different problems to comply with the values of the international principles. However, are the UK's promises to children put into practice?