Rise in UK cases lodged at European Court of Human Rights

In 2017 there were 512 cases lodged against the UK at the Strasbourg court, though more than 99 per cent were declared inadmissible.

And in less than one per cent of cases did the court find against the UK government.

In only five cases were substantive judgments produced, of which two ran contrary to domestic rulings.

In 2016, 399 cases were brought against the UK, with the court hearing seven claims but making no findings against it.

The figures contrast favourably with countries including Russia and Turkey. The court heard 305 cases involving Russia and found against the Putin regime 293 times while Turkey was involved in 116 cases, with the court finding against its government in 99.

Overall, the number of applications before the court dropped by 30 per cent, from 80,000 at the beginning of last year to 56,000 at present.