Written question asked by Greg Pope (Labour) on Thursday, 2 July 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 6 July 2009. It was answered by Chris Bryant (Labour) on Wednesday, 8 July 2009 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

British Overseas Territories: Discrimination

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many recently amended constitutions of Overseas Territories do not prohibit discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.

Answer: Since 2006, the Government have agreed new constitutions with five Overseas Territories and implemented them by Order in Council: the British Virgin Islands, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Cayman Islands (not yet in force). Only the Falkland Islands' constitution specifically mentions sexual orientation as a ground on which discrimination is prohibited.The new St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cuhna Constitution, which has been agreed and will be submitted to Her Majesty the Queen in the Privy Council on 8 July 2009, also specifically mentions sexual orientation as a ground on which discrimination is prohibited.The Government take the protection of human rights very seriously. Even though there may not be specific provision within a constitution for non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, we do ensure that all constitutions contain a Bill of Rights that reflects at a minimum the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The effect is that all groups, whether or not specifically mentioned in the Bill of Rights have at least the same degree of protection under the constitution as people in the UK have under the ECHR and the Human Rights Act.

Secondary information