UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, Panel on “Strengthening regional races to the top on business and human rights: the role of regional organisations”

27 November 2019, Geneva

Thank you Mr Giacomini.

First of all, I wish to thank the European External Action Service for co-hosting this event with the Council of Europe and for all their efforts in convening this panel. Given that one of the themes of this session is the cooperation between organisations, it is a welcome example and one further step in our strong relationship. The most recent illustration of this strong partnership is the visit that Commissioner Malmström paid to the Council of Europe yesterday to discuss some issues concerning human rights protection.

This panel provides an excellent opportunity to share information on the initiatives that are taking place across the represented regions, and I hope that we will have the chance to discuss and reflect on where we can complement and reinforce one another. The Council of Europe is open to collaboration and I hope we will identify some avenues where we can support one another and share our respective expertise.

To begin with, what do we consider as a regional “race to the top”? The expression is clearly intended to be antithetical to the “race to the bottom”, where actors would step back from their obligations and responsibilities, with the risk of seeing a competitive spiral of decreased protection of human rights.

On the contrary, a “race to the top” implies a concerted effort by all stakeholders to work together to secure progress in protecting human rights in the business field.  A concerted effort based on their shared responsibility and leading to a common agenda where States and other actors, and in particular private enterprises, undertake mutually enforcing approaches, implement complementary standards and strategies to develop a coherent policy of benefit to all.

On the European scene, two major binding legal instruments which have have been developed within the framework of the Council of Europe have to be mentioned in this context, namely the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Social Charter. They constitute the backbone of our action in the human rights filed and are both relevant when it comes to business and human rights as they afford protection against business-related human rights abuses, including with regard to the rights of workers.

Coming more specifically to this topic, there are two areas where action has been taken by the Council of Europe to promote this race to the top: the design, implementation and review of standards and policies; and the promotion of peer exchanges and networks between national officials.

The United Nations Guiding Principles (UNGPS) of course have provided the foundational common standards for this field, and their implementation at a regional and domestic level is a priority.

Regional organisations have their own standard setting role to encourage this implementation among their members.

Across all our regions we have seen a number of hard and soft instruments that address business and human rights and the wide range of issues in this field: such as data protection, victim’s rights, and non-financial reporting; alongside industry specific standards and guidance.

I am pleased to say that standards have been agreed at the Council of Europe level through the adoption, in 2016, by the Committee of Ministers of a Recommendation to member States on Human Rights and Business.

This recommendation is designed to promote the effective implementation of the UNGPs across the Council of Europe region, and so provides another foundation for our members in this objective. In particular, the Recommendation:

• Reaffirms the Committee of Ministers commitment to the effective implementation of the UNGP's at the European level.
• Calls on governments of member States to review their legislation and practice to ensure compliance with the Recommendation, and by reference the UNGPs.
• The appendix contains 70 paragraphs of further guidance and recommendations on implementing the UNGPs. This guidance pertains to each of the Pillars of the UNGPs, with a special focus on access to remedy.
• Outlines additional specific protections for workers, children, indigenous peoples, and human rights defenders.

But to make such standards effective, concrete concerted action is needed at the domestic level. Even though implementation may not be as quick and harmonious as one may wish to see, we are seeing incremental progress.

And as more and more initiatives are taken and commitments realised, we will reach a stage where achievements can be accumulated and reproduced at a regional scale.

One particular opportunity on our horizon is that the implementation of this recommendation will be reviewed by the Committee of Ministers in 2021, five years after its adoption. This review will offer a chance for our member States to reflect on progress made and possible further steps for the implementation of the UNGPs across Europe.

Another important tool for the implementation of the UNGPs are peer learning exchanges and the sharing of national initiatives, activities and expertise. We will hear shortly from Mr Anthierens on such an experience, and I look forward to the insights that have been gained there.

In this regard I would like to take the opportunity to inform you of the launch of the Council of Europe’s online platform for business and human rights this week.

This platform aims to provide another avenue for our member States to share their national implementation practices and engage with their counterparts. Through our intergovernmental committee process we receive submissions from our member States on their activities and initiatives, and these are hosted on a public website to facilitate the sharing of national practices between all interested actors and provide a source of inspiration and possibly cooperation in the development of future initiatives.

We will also use the platform to encourage dialogue between the relevant officials and agents of national governments, with the objective of building a practical and professional network between them. In this respect, our Steering Committee for Human Rights (CDDH) is exploring how best to organise an intergovernmental expert workshop to bring together those across governments who are at the practical level of UNGP implementation to share their expertise and form closer contacts.

Should you wish to visit the public page of this platform, you will be able to find it on the website of the Steering Committee for Human Rights, or through an online search, and relevant links will be provided in the coming days through the social media.

To conclude, I believe that regional organisations must continue in their role to promote and support greater action by their member States and closer cooperation between them in the implementation of the UNGPs.

By working with our members and partners in a concerted manner, promoting a mindset of mutual reinforcement, through complementary standards and policy, and continual peer learning and exchanges we will see our regions engaging in a race to the top in the field of Business and Human Rights.