Section 2 International Arrangements
Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is not a
legally binding document, the UN General Assembly adopted,
in 1966, the 'International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Political Rights' and the 'International Covenant on Civil and
political Rights'. Britain ratified both covenants in
1976.
Britain is bound by the Council of Europe's 1953 'European
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and
Fundamental Freedoms'. The Convention allows individual
petitions against governments to the European Commission on
Human Rights, if all possible domestic remedies have been
exhausted. Since 1966 Britain has accepted the right of
individual petition under the Convention and the compulsory
jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights. The
outcome of some cases has led to changes in British law to
improve human rights, for example the abolition of corporal
punishment in state schools and improved rights for
prisoners.Britain is not a party to the Convention's Fourth
Protocol (Freedom of Movement) because of inconsistency with
some aspects of the United Kingdom immigration control
system nor the Sixth Protocol (abolition of the death penalty).