Human Rights (Joint Committee)

Joint select committee, since 17 January 2001. Its page on the Parliament website.

The Joint Committee on Human Rights consists of twelve members, appointed from both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, to examine matters relating to human rights within the United Kingdom, as well as scrutinising every Government Bill for its compatibility with human rights.

Inquiries

• Legislative Scrutiny: Immigration and Asylum Bill (9 July 2026)
• The work of the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (29 April 2026 to 6 July 2026)
• Security, safety and protest: the role of Human Rights (11 March 2026)
• The human rights implications of the UK-Mauritius Agreement (26 January 2026 to 13 May 2026)
• The Role of the Independent Public Advocate (7 January 2026 to 13 May 2026)
• Work of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sentencing, Youth Justice and International at Ministry of Justice (26 November 2025 to 13 May 2026)
• Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Potential impact on the Human Rights of disabled people (5 November 2025 to 13 May 2026)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Northern Ireland Troubles Bill (30 October 2025)
• Human Rights and the Regulation of AI (25 July 2025)
• Proposal for a draft Human Rights Act 1998 (Remedial) Order 2025 (23 July 2025 to 13 May 2026)
• Human Rights of Children in the Social Care System in England (15 July 2025)
• Universal Periodic Review (18 June 2025 to 8 September 2025)
• Work of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) (22 May 2025)
• Appointment of the Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) (28 April 2025 to 8 September 2025)
• The work of the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (23 April 2025 to 8 September 2025)
• Crime and Policing Bill (27 March 2025 to 13 May 2026)
• Attorney General (26 March 2025 to 22 May 2025)
• Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill (14 March 2025 to 31 October 2025)
• Transnational repression in the UK (24 January 2025)
• Forced Labour in UK Supply Chains (16 January 2025)
• Mental Health Bill (19 December 2024 to 13 May 2026)
• Northern Ireland Legacy Remedial Order (12 December 2024)
• The European Court of Human Rights and Climate Change: Recent Judgments and Implications for the UK (14 May 2024 to 29 May 2024)
• The role of human rights in the UK democratic process (30 April 2024 to 29 May 2024)
• Ministerial Scrutiny: the UK's engagement with its international human rights obligations (16 April 2024 to 24 April 2024)
• Government proposals on extremism (13 March 2024 to 20 March 2024)
• Draft Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (Remedial) Order 2023 (10 January 2024 to 16 April 2024)
• Safety of Rwanda (Asylum & Immigration) Bill (15 December 2023 to 19 March 2024)
• Sentencing Bill 2023 (5 December 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Investigatory Powers (Amendment) Bill 2023 (5 December 2023 to 25 April 2024)
• Criminal Justice Bill 2023 (5 December 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Accountability for Daesh crimes (12 October 2023 to 14 July 2025)
• Hillsborough Law (11 July 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Victims and Prisoners Bill (22 June 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Data Protection and Digital Information (No. 2) Bill (27 April 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Proposal for a Draft Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (Remedial) Order 2023 (23 March 2023 to 25 October 2023)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Illegal Migration Bill (16 March 2023 to 8 February 2024)
• Human rights and assisted dying (1 March 2023 to 25 October 2023)
• Human Rights at Work (10 February 2023 to 29 May 2024)
• Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner (7 February 2023 to 23 November 2023)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill 2022-2023 (20 January 2023 to 20 July 2023)
• Children's Commissioner (13 January 2023 to 20 January 2023)
• Human Rights of Asylum Seekers in the UK (3 November 2022 to 29 May 2024)
• SLAPPs: Human Rights Implications (25 October 2022 to 27 October 2023)
• Draft Bereavement Benefits (Remedial) Order 2022 (20 October 2022 to 1 September 2023)
• Draft State Immunity Act 1978 (Remedial) Order 2022 (13 October 2022 to 27 September 2023)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Bill of Rights Bill (12 July 2022 to 29 July 2022)
• Parliament and human rights (27 June 2022 to 27 October 2022)
• Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill (26 May 2022 to 31 May 2023)
• The UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership and Human Rights (24 May 2022 to 24 November 2022)
• Legislative Scrutiny: National Security Bill (19 May 2022 to 23 October 2023)
• Proposal for a draft State Immunity Act 1978 (Remedial) Order (19 May 2022 to 3 March 2024)
• Human Rights Ombudsperson (12 May 2022 to 9 June 2023)
• Human Rights Act Reform (11 January 2022 to 2 October 2023)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Judicial Review and Courts Bill (2 December 2021 to 28 October 2022)
• Ministerial Scrutiny: Human Rights (16 November 2021 to 27 October 2022)
• The right to family life: adoption of children of unmarried women 1949-1976 (23 September 2021 to 5 December 2023)
• Protecting human rights in care settings (20 September 2021 to 29 December 2023)
• Proposal for a draft Bereavement Benefits (Remedial) Order 2021 (21 July 2021 to 2 October 2023)
• Legislative Scrutiny: Nationality and Borders Bill (21 July 2021 to 31 October 2022)

Organisations it has heard from most

• Garden Court Chambers (10)
• Ministry of Justice (9)
• Doughty Street Chambers (6)
• Refugee Council (6)
• National Police Chiefs' Council (5)
• University of Oxford (5)
• Equality and Human Rights Commission (4)
• JUSTICE (4)
• Matrix Chambers (4)
• The University of Bristol (4)
• University of Cambridge (4)
• Home Office (3)
• House of Lords (3)
• Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association (ILPA) (3)
• Liberty (3)