Judith Robertson

Much will depend on the approach taken by Lady Poole, it said.

The commission first called for a human rights-based approach to a public inquiry in July 2020, in the context of reporting on human rights in care homes. We reiterated this call in May 2021 in a letter to Ministers. In September 2021, we submitted detailed advice to the Scottish government’s consultation on the draft aims and principles of an Inquiry.

Judith Robertson, chair of the commission, said: “Acting quickly to identify and learn lessons from the handling of the pandemic, through a human rights lens, will help to identify where things went wrong and ensure rights-respecting governance and decision making in future times of crisis. We welcome the positive steps taken to ensure human rights are considered by the inquiry.

“However, we remain concerned to ensure that the inquiry itself now takes a human rights-based approach to the greatest extent possible within its terms of reference. We will be writing shortly to Lady Poole to highlight key ways in which this can be done.

“Meanwhile, the Scottish government must ensure that the inquiry has the resources required to take a human rights based approach, including the provision of advocacy and psychological support for those particularly affected by the handling of the pandemic. It must also give a public commitment to respond in full to all the recommendations made when the inquiry reports, and take all necessary steps to ensure that all public bodies and those carrying out public functions act in accordance with the principles of full transparency and cooperation in relation to the inquiry.”