Universal Periodic Review

Raise other provisions of the CRC to constitutional status, in particular social rights, the right to an adequate standard of living and the right to health care

Proponent:

Remarks to progress by Liga (last modified Dec 31, 2024):

Austria has not yet enshrined any fundamental social rights such as the right to an adequate standard of living or healthcare in its constitution, which makes it an exception within the EU. While basic human rights and civil liberties are protected in the Austrian constitution, fundamental social rights have so far only applied on the basis of simple laws that can be changed more easily, e.g. in the area of minimum income and healthcare. As a result, social benefits do not have the same constitutional stability as civil liberties.  The Austrian Ombudsman Board and various NGOs are therefore pushing for fundamental social rights to be enshrined in the constitution. A comprehensive catalogue, which was considered in the 2020-2024 government programme, would be necessary, for example, to implement a „Federal Constitutional Law on Social Security“ that protects rights such as healthcare, housing and minimum care. Initiatives such as the Poverty Conference and the Momentum Institute support these demands and emphasise that such rights should also be subject to the control of the Constitutional Court (Ombudsman Board: Volksanwaltschaft drängt auf soziale Grundrechte in der Verfassung, 2022) and a special report by the Ombudsman Board, 2023: https://volksanwaltschaft.gv.at/artikel/Achitz-Sozialhilfe-muss-Existenz-sichern-Soziale-Grundrechte-in-Verfassung-verankern).