Commissioner Deborah McMillan has identified key areas that she says will come under the spotlight given Jersey’s commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. And she urged the government to initiate improvements and forge a ‘world-class’ reputation for how children are cared for.
The Island signed up to the UNCRC in 2014 and, as part of the obligations for all signatories, the commissioner is required to submit regular reports.
Mrs McMillan spoke about her preparations for the report, due to be sent to the UN by 1 November, having also called for the government to do more to introduce legislation enshrining children’s rights.
After the submission of the report later this year, the government will be scrutinised by UN officials over a two-year period that will culminate in senior civil servants travelling to UN headquarters in Geneva to answer questions about Jersey’s track-record.
‘This is very public scrutiny, and the focus must be on children’s rights,’ she said. ‘There are many aspects that aren’t “nice-to-have” features, but part of Jersey’s international legal obligation.’
Mrs McMillan said that charges for children’s visits to doctors remained one of her biggest concerns, and an area in which she believed Jersey failed to meet article 24 of the convention covering the right to be able to access good-quality healthcare.
Since local GPs agreed to a temporary period of central contracts of employment during the Covid-19 pandemic, GP visits for those aged five to 17 have cost £10.
‘It may not seem much to some people, but in many cases there are parents counting every penny and children’s health ends up suffering,’ she said. ‘Children’s GP fees have been waived in many cases, but this access should be a right, not a matter of charity.’
The commissioner also expressed concerns about disadvantaged children trailing behind the majority in terms of education. This ‘attainment gap’ had been measured at 40%, she said, with fears that it would widen further during the pandemic when less well-off children might not have access to technology or a home environment conducive to studying.
Another area where Mrs McMillan has concerns is housing.
‘If young people leave home after getting a job and move into a new place to live, but then lose their job and are struggling financially, they can’t claim income support if they are under 25,’ she said.
‘There is, of course, the perennial issue of qualified and unqualified housing but where we find this has the greatest impact on children’s rights is when it creates what’s known as “housing stress”. This is when more than 30% of a household’s income goes on rent. We know from our own work, as well as from government statistics, that a large number of Jersey families find themselves in this predicament. And that is simply not good enough.’
Mrs McMillan said that improvements to children’s rights should be seen as an investment, not a cost.
‘If children are at a disadvantage as they grow up then they will struggle in the future and be less likely to contribute to the economy,’ she said.
The commissioner said she had been analysing data and estimated that there were 10,148 children living with ‘family-related vulnerabilities’. This includes children living in households that report domestic abuse, children in need, children who are young carers and those living in low-income families.
As part of its obligation under the UNCRC, Jersey – in common with all other signatories to the convention – will go through a reporting cycle every five years.
Mrs McMillan said that she hoped the government would see the UN scrutiny as a springboard to push ahead with improvements.
‘What an opportunity for the government to get plans in place and move to become a world-class jurisdiction where children are properly cared for and their rights are both respected and protected.’
