UK and 46 European states sign declaration urging ECHR to defer to national courts on migration cases
The UK and 45 other Council of Europe members signed a declaration in Chișinău on Friday urging the European Court of Human Rights to leave most migration decisions to national courts. The non-binding political document warns that failure to address migration pressures could undermine European democracy and public confidence in the human rights system. UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called it a "common-sense approach" to prevent systems from being "unfairly gamed."
CHIȘINĂU, Moldova — The UK and 45 other member countries of the Council of Europe on Friday signed a non-binding declaration urging the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to leave most migration decisions to national courts, in a bid to accelerate deportations and counter populist pressure on the 75-year-old human rights system.
The declaration, adopted by consensus at a summit in Chișinău, warns that failure to address migration pressures could undermine European democracy and public confidence in the Convention system. It was signed by all 46 members of the Council of Europe, the political body that oversees the human rights court and is separate from the European Union.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper described the deal as a "common-sense approach" and said it would ensure immigration systems "can't be unfairly gamed to prevent foreign criminals or those accused of crimes abroad being lawfully returned." Speaking on the doorstep of the summit, Cooper said the agreement was "an example of how the partnerships that we build abroad make us stronger at home."
The document affirms that states have "the undeniable sovereign right" to establish their own immigration policies and remove foreign nationals in the public interest. It warns that people smuggling "risks undermining support for and the integrity of the Convention system" and says a hostile state or other actor cannot be allowed to abuse the system.
On the key Article 3 prohibition of torture, the declaration states that a failed migrant cannot avoid deportation simply by claiming they may face inhuman or degrading treatment in their home country. It says the quality of accessible healthcare in the receiving state should only give rise to a real risk of inhuman treatment "in very exceptional circumstances," and that the bar for such claims should be "high and consistent."
The declaration underlines that the Article 8 right to family life does not bar deportation and that national courts, rather than Strasbourg, are best placed to balance individual rights and public interests. "The right balance must be struck between individual rights and interests and the weighty public interests of defending freedom and security," it says.
The document does not change the wording of the European Convention on Human Rights but seeks to influence its application by domestic courts and national governments. Alain Berset, secretary general of the Council of Europe, said the declaration would "guide our own work as well as that of national authorities and domestic courts."
UK Attorney General Richard Hermer said leaving the ECHR "would not solve any of our challenges" and would isolate the UK alongside Russia and Belarus. "Contrast that with both Conservatives and Reform — who simply want to walk away from our allies," Hermer told POLITICO on the sidelines of the meeting. "They said, indeed hoped, that this Political Declaration wouldn't happen because it undermines their argument – change is possible, as we have shown."