UK court strikes down Scottish plan for children

Britain’s Supreme Court has ruled against a plan by the Scottish government to appoint a non-family member adult to look out for every child.

The “named person” plan approved by the Scottish government in 2014 seeks to assign an adult — such as a teacher or health worker — to monitor the welfare of everyone under 18.

Appeal

A coalition of charities mounted an appeal, saying the proposal is intrusive and breaches parents’ human rights.

Judges ruled yesterday the amount of personal information-sharing in the plan violates rights to privacy and family rights.

Simon Calvert of the “No to Named Persons” campaign welcomed the ruling against what he called “state snoopers with intrusive data-sharing powers.”

The Scottish government says it will amend the legislation and then proceed again with the plan.