DESIGNING BUDGETS THAT DELIVER HUMAN RIGHTS
This briefing explains how governments can embed human rights principles directly into their budget processes. It focuses on adopting a rights-based approach that aligns every stage of the budget cycle, from planning and approval to spending and review with human rights standards.
It outlines practical steps for policymakers: measuring needs, setting rights-based priorities, conducting human-rights impact assessments, ensuring progressive taxation, and monitoring outcomes.
It also examines how existing UK budget institutions and processes such as HM Treasury, Parliament and the National Audit Office can integrate human rights considerations more systematically.
By making fiscal decisions transparent, participatory and fair, governments can use public budgets as a key lever for advancing everyday rights and improving accountability for resource use.
Continue to part 3: Budget analysis & scrutiny
Back to Part 1 - Human rights, Fiscal Policy and Public Budgets