Kemi Badenoch faces criticism for her decision to pull the UK out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), with accusations of being too timid to challenge her own party’s stance. The Conservative leader’s proposal to withdraw from the ECHR in order to control immigration sparked backlash from human rights organizations.
The Labour Party has accused Badenoch of adopting a policy she previously opposed to counter the Reform UK party. The ECHR, a post-WWII international treaty safeguarding human rights in 46 member states, includes protections for life, liberty, fair trials, privacy, freedom of expression, and bans on torture, slavery, and discrimination.
Exiting the ECHR would necessitate a new Bill of Rights to prevent higher courts from ruling government actions as human rights violations, potentially easing deportations. However, such a move could jeopardize the Good Friday Agreement, which brought peace to Northern Ireland, and impact the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, affecting extradition arrangements.
Critics argue that leaving the ECHR may prompt other countries to follow suit and undermine the UK’s human rights advocacy. Amnesty International UK’s chief executive warned against removing rights that hold politicians accountable, emphasizing the vulnerability of individuals to political manipulation without such protections.
Richard Atkinson, president of the Law Society of England and Wales, criticized the Conservative Party for prioritizing political interests over public welfare, highlighting the risk of rights erosion without the ECHR safeguard.