Allister faces Chief Human Rights Commissioner with criticisms
06 February 2008
Jim Allister QC MEP has met with Chief NI Human Rights Commissioner, Monica McWilliams, to express his opposition to the general direction the Commission is headed, particularly on a Bill of Rights. The meeting followed similar criticism from the Church of Ireland Gazette.
The Traditional Unionist MEP commented:-
“In what could only be described as a straight-talking meeting, I left Ms McWilliams in no doubt as to my opposition to a separate Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland. Such would distinguish our citizenship from that of the rest of the UK and with the intended all-island Charter of Rights would further align us with the Republic of Ireland.
There is a direct nexus of constitutional importance between citizenship and rights. In consequence all the citizens of a nation should enjoy the same basic rights, with due respect to the nuances of regional ethos and values. Thus, any Bill of Rights should be UK-wide and not unique to Northern Ireland. Not only does the NI Human Rights Commission seek to distinguish Northern Ireland from GB with its own unnecessary Bill of Rights, but, very significantly, it wants “equivalence of rights” with the Republic of Ireland. Hence the proposal for an all-island Charter of Rights.
This all-island Charter of Rights is an ill-concealed attempt to promote all-island citizenship and is the outworking of an overtly and unacceptable political agenda, spawned in the Belfast Agreement. I very plainly told Ms McWilliams such was repulsive to traditional unionists.”
