One does not often see ‘human rights’ and ‘budgets’ together in the same sentence, especially in governments’ policies and debates. But they are firmly linked as demonstrated in this, our final in a series of three papers charting key ways in which the Irish Government could better protect people’s economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights.
Despite tentative signs of Ireland’s economic recovery, human rights – in particular, ESC rights – have been negatively impacted by the economic crisis and the Government’s responding austerity measures. The potential for human rights to act as a guide and framework for better decision making and governance, especially when a country like Ireland is emerging from recession, is still missing from the debate. This needs to change. Otherwise we will repeat the mistakes of the past.
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