Holyrood passes revised bill on children’s rights after UK challenge

Shirley-Anne Somerville, the Scottish cabinet secretary for social justice, said the legislation would ‘change the way we think about children’s rights’. Photograph: Ken Jack/Getty Images

Campaigners, politicians and young people who led grassroots efforts to put international children’s rights standards at the heart of Scottish law are celebrating the passing of a landmark Holyrood bill.

The Scottish parliament voted unanimously on Thursday afternoon for Scotland to become the first devolved nation to incorporate the UN charter on the rights of the child (UNCRC) into domestic law.