Analysis: Policy - Labour Party Conference - Does respect extend tothe young?

The old Labour Party was always very concerned with rights: the rights of workers, the rights of poor people, the rights of the oppressed in our society. At the party's annual conference in Brighton last week, however, there was concern that New Labour has lost sight of these issues, particularly in relation to the rights of children and young people.

These worries relate to many aspects of the Government's work. Ashley Sweetland, a consultant to the UK Youth Parliament, said: "There has been a complete move away from children's rights, and that is a real shame." The most serious concerns, though, are about the nuts and bolts of the Government's drive to cut crime and antisocial behaviour, which seems to be increasingly packaged up with the policy idea of "respect" that has emerged since the general election in May.