Courts must rise above human rights “paranoia” says Clegg
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has mounted a staunch defence of the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA 1998) and the decisions of the courts, ahead of the UK taking over the chairmanship of the Council of Europe in November.
Writing in The Guardian last week, Clegg said incorporating the European Convention on Human Rights into domestic law had been “a hugely positive step”, reducing delays for litigants and sending a message about the value the UK places on human rights.
A future Bill of Rights should be used to “deepen our commitment” to the protections of HRA 1998 and to protect “other British liberties, such as the right to jury trial”. The government would use its chairmanship to seek reforms to “improve the timeliness and consistency” of the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECtHR) decision-making.
A myth had taken root that human rights were “a charter for greedy lawyers and meddlesome bureaucrats”, he wrote, blaming “overcautious lawyers and officials” for creating a “culture of legal paranoia”.
Clegg also listed some of the courts’ achievements, including preventing local authorities from snooping on families and upholding the rights of elderly married couples to be cared for together in care homes.
Prime Minister David Cameron has frequently called for HRA 1998 to be repealed, while MPs across the parties have expressed fury at a ECtHR ruling that Britain’s blanket ban on prisoners voting is unlawful.
Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti said: “This is a welcome intervention from the deputy prime minister and certainly not before time.
“The coalition was stitched together on a civil liberties ticket. You can’t talk human rights in the Arab spring whilst trashing them at home all year round.”
See further, the recent NLJ series on human rights by Roger Smith, director of Justice:
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