| The
Department for Constitutional Affairs is responsible
in government for upholding justice, rights
and democracy. Our job is to serve the public
effectively.
Our aim as the Department for Constitutional
Affairs (DCA) is to provide for effective
and accessible justice for all, to ensure
the rights and responsibilities of the citizen,
and to modernise the law and constitution.
Of particular interest for people with learning
difficulties is the Department's work on Rights.
Rights
The Department has an over-arching responsibility
for the law and policy on human rights, freedom of information, data protection and gender recognition.
Our aim is to embed these basic rights. They
need to be seen not only as guarantees of basic
fairness and a proper relationship between the
citizen and the state, but also as positive
values that unite a strong, well-governed and
cohesive society where there is opportunity
and prosperity for all.
Of course, rights do not exist in a vacuum
so the culture of respect we need to build requires
a sense of personal responsibility and respect
for the rights of others, as well as entitlement.
We have challenging agendas in other policy
areas, including administrative reform of the
Tribunals system, as well as legislation aimed
at supporting the rights of people suffering from mental
incapacity.
The Department is also responsible for the
Public Guardianship Office (PGO), which provides
financial protection services for clients who
are not able to manage their financial affairs
because of mental incapacity. |
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