Lord Neuberger slams 'slanted' portrayal of human rights
Britain's top judge warns UK will have to quit UN if it wants to send terrorism suspects to face torture
IF BRITAIN wants to deport terrorism suspects to countries that carry out torture, it will have to pull out of the United Nations as well as the European Court of Human Rights, the country's top judge has warned.
Lord Neuberger, the president of the supreme court, sounded his warning after Home Secretary Theresa May told the Mail on Sunday she would make the UK's withdrawal from the ECHR part of the Tory manifesto before the general election in 2015. May has been an outspoken critic of the court which has frustrated her efforts to deport the radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada to Jordan.
The Mail, which says the ECHR has allowed "dangerous criminals and hate preachers" to remain in the UK, applauded May's pledge. If enacted it would "leave British judges free to interpret the law without interference from the Strasbourg-based ECHR", the paper said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
But the proposal got short shrift from Lord Neuberger, who today launched what The Guardian calls a "sustained attack" on "slanted" media coverage and "one-sided portrayals" of the ECHR and the way it operates.
Neuberger, 65, who was sworn in as president of the supreme court on 1 October last year, said the UK's highest court is "not subservient", but works "in a dialogue" with judges in Strasbourg. Pulling out of the ECHR would "certainly send an unfortunate number of messages," he told The Guardian.
Neuberger conceded that "human rights excite great emotion," but said he objected to the misrepresentation of some of the ECHR's decisions. "An obvious example is attacking the [European] human rights convention because we can't send back nasty terrorists because they might be tortured. Well, even if you think we should be able to be send them back … there's a UN convention going back to 1948 which says you can't do that – which stops it on its own, unless we are going to pull out of the UN."
The judge also hit back at criticisms of the judiciary made by the Home Secretary last month when she accused judges of "subverting" British democracy and making the streets of Britain more dangerous by ignoring rules aimed at deporting more foreign criminals.
Neuberger said the minister's comments were "inappropriate, unhelpful and wrong" and told the Daily Telegraph that such public attacks risked "destabilising" the delicate balance between Parliament and the judiciary.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Oysters from New York's past could shore up its future
Under the Radar Project aims to seed a billion oysters in the city's waterways to improve water quality, fight coastal erosion and protect against storm surges
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Today's political cartoons - November 24, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - taped bananas, flying monkeys, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Spanish cop, 20 million euros and 13 tonnes of cocaine
In the Spotlight Óscar Sánchez Gil, Chief Inspector of Spain's Economic and Tax Crimes Unit, has been arrested for drug trafficking
By The Week UK Published
-
John Prescott: was he Labour's last link to the working class?
Today's Big Quesiton 'A total one-off': tributes have poured in for the former deputy PM and trade unionist
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Last hopes for justice for UK's nuclear test veterans
Under the Radar Thousands of ex-service personnel say their lives have been blighted by aggressive cancers and genetic mutations
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Donald Trump wreck the Brexit deal?
Today's Big Question President-elect's victory could help UK's reset with the EU, but a free-trade agreement with the US to dodge his threatened tariffs could hinder it
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is the next Tory leader up against?
Today's Big Question Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick will have to unify warring factions and win back disillusioned voters – without alienating the centre ground
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Israel votes to ban UN agency for Palestinians
Speed Read UNRWA provides food, medical care and other humanitarian assistance to Palestine
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
What is Lammy hoping to achieve in China?
Today's Big Question Foreign secretary heads to Beijing as Labour seeks cooperation on global challenges and courts opportunities for trade and investment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US says Israel must up Gaza aid or risk arms halt
Speed Read The Biden administration has provided a 30-day ultimatum to the country
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Israel hits UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, bombs Beirut
Speed Read Israeli forces have fired at three United Nations positions in Lebanon
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published