Article 14

Right not to be discriminated against

The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.

This means that a person must not be discriminated against in respect of the implementation of other Convention rights on the grounds listed above. While the protected grounds are listed, they are not limited and “other status” has been found to include sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, trade union affiliation and homelessness.

This does not give people a general right not to be discriminated against, but rather to argue that they have been discriminated against in the exercise of their Conventions Rights. Nor does it mean that one of the other Convention Rights needs to be breached, but just that they are relevant.

So if people’s right to private and family life is interfered with in different ways for some groups but not others, then that may well amount to a breach of the right not to be discriminated against. Similarly, there may be a right to education, but if access to education is determined differently for protected groups, then it may be possible to claim a breach of this Article.

Under the Convention, discrimination means treating people differently without an objective and reasonable justification on prohibited grounds. So while direct discrimination can be justified, particularly weighty reasons will be required to justify the key grounds, such as sex and race.

Where the same rule applies to all but has greater adverse impact on a protected group this can amount to indirect discrimination, unless it is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

What this means for local authorities

When any of the other Conventions rights are relevant for decisions or policies, then local authorities must be careful to ensure that they are not discriminating against one or more of the protected groups.

Where local authorities take special measures to redress an existing situation of inequality, local authorities will require to justify it by reference to particular disadvantage, and to show that it is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

Case law examples

• In Abdulaziz and others v UK, because of the immigration rules then in force, the applicants’ husbands were refused entry into the UK, although had they been men their wives would have been permitted entry. The European Court of Human Rights decided while the right to private and family life does not allow married couples to choose which country they want to reside in, so there was no breach of Article 8, but where wives were treated differently from husbands, there was a breach of Article 14.

• In DH v Czech Republic, the European Court of Human Rights decided that segregating Roma students into “special” schools was a breach of Article 14 and the right to education.

• In Ghaidan v Godin-Mendoza, the House of Lords decided that the law allowing succession to tenancies for a spouse (and couples living as husband and wife) but not same sex couples, breached the right to private and family life read with Article 14, so that the relevant legislation had to be interpreted to comply with these Convention rights.