Rights Of Child Migrants

EDM number 1531 in 2006-07, proposed by Diane Abbott on 22/05/2007.

That this House notes the commitment made by the UK Government to the rights of all children contained within the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the UK Children's Act 1989; notes that the Convention clearly states that `State Parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present Convention to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind,' and that `In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interest of the child shall be a primary consideration'; draws attention to the findings of a number of recent reports carried out by organisations such as Save the Children and the Institute of Race Relations which find that migrant children are systematically having their rights denied or neglected whilst in the UK as a direct or indirect result of immigration policy and practices; and calls upon the Government to amend its approach to child migrants in order to prioritise the rights of the child over immigration law, as is mandatory under international law.

This motion has been signed by a total of 41 MPs.