Opposition to repeal of UK’s Human Rights Act galvanises

A coalition of more than 130 of the UK’s most prominent organisations – ranging from religious and professional bodies to law firms, unions, environmental charities and the families of terrorism victims – have publicly committed to oppose any attempt to repeal the Human Rights Act as research shows that, in any case, the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECtHR) influence on the UK’s legal systems has declined over recent years.

Ahead of today’s confirmation in the Queen’s Speech that the UK government intends to replace the act with a “British Bill of Rights”, 138 organisations pledged to fight the proposals.

The pledge reads:

“We believe in fundamental human rights and freedoms – shared values that protect every member of the human family and the society we seek to build together.

“Human rights underpin our democracy, hold governments to account and require that everyone’s dignity is equally respected.

“We pledge to oppose any government plans to repeal our Human Rights Act – in so doing we stand firm on guaranteeing universal human rights protections for generations to come.”

The Conservative government seeks in part to limit the influence of the ECtHR by introducing its bill.

However, the website rightsinfo.org has looked at the treatment of the UK by the ECtHR and found that “Court is dramatically less influential to our legal system than it was even a few years ago, with the number of UK cases dealt with and human rights violations found against the UK dropping off dramatically.”

Bella Sankey, director of policy for Liberty, said: “These diverse organisations speak as one in defending the Human Rights Act. They join all the devolved administrations, all major opposition parties, Conservative rebels, anti-apartheid activists and thousands of ordinary people in opposing divisive and discriminatory plans to replace human rights with government-sanctioned privileges.

“There is a long struggle ahead, but as the chorus of condemnation grows, how much longer can the government refuse to listen?”

Kate Allen, Amnesty UK director, said: “Hillsborough shows how vital the Human Rights Act is to ordinary people when all other avenues of justice fail. We mustn’t let politicians tear up those hard-won protections.

“Walking away from the Human Rights Act would also threaten to bring down the crucial peace agreement in Northern Ireland. The government should leave the Human Rights Act alone - it’s ours, it’s working, it’s needed.”