The “Pariah State” Argument

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Monday, 21 February 2011 at 7:30 pm By way of a further footnote to my column yesterday suggesting that Britain should pull out of the European Court of Human Rights while remaining signatory to the Convention, a correspondent takes issue with my rather compressed reference to the Chahal judgment of 1996. I wrote: At other times [Tony Blair] and …

Confirmation hearings for Supreme Court judges?

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Friday, 3 June 2011 at 1:45 pm James Grant in this month’s Prospect has raised the issue again of the composition of the Supreme Court (which has a new chamber), what we know of the judges’ ideological leanings, and whether we should have American-style confirmation hearings on their appointment. Alexander Horne, in his paper …

Never mind the cat: Theresa May is right

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Thursday, 6 October 2011 at 2:34 pm Back to Theresa May’s speech to the Conservative conference that caused such a kerfuffle:* We all know the stories about the Human Rights Act. The violent drug dealer who cannot be sent home because his daughter – for whom he pays no maintenance – …

Never mind the cat: Kenneth Clarke is wrong

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Sunday, 9 October 2011 at 7:50 pm My column for The Independent on Sunday today repeats my admiration for Kenneth Clarke, the lost leader of the Conservative Party, the candidate against whom others defined themselves for about a decade. That is not to say that he is right in his dispute with Theresa …

On Eurosceptic Process and Substance

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Sunday, 23 October 2011 at 12:10 pm On the processology, I say David Cameron will emerge from tomorrow’s rebellion in the Commons strengthened, because he will have faced down the obsessives in his party. Andrew Rawnsley disagrees, which is good because you don’t want Sunday columnists all saying the same thing. He says the …

A “Right of Rebuttal” against Strasbourg?

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Tuesday, 25 October 2011 at 11:51 am Dominic Grieve, the Attorney General (right), gave an important speech last night on reform of the Human Rights Act and the Government’s plans to reform the European Court of Human Rights. On 7 November, the UK takes the chair of the Committee of Ministers, the governing …

Human Rights: anyone got a better idea than muddling on?

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Sunday, 22 April 2012 at 2:38 pm I disagreed with the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in January that the UK had to keep Abu Qatada here because his trial in Jordan might use evidence obtained from torture. Nor did I agree with its ruling last year, affirmed …

Victory over the “foreign court”

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Friday, 25 May 2012 at 9:06 pm Jack Straw and David Davis have a joint article in the Telegraph today, urging the Government to ignore the European Court of Human Rights and to refuse to give convicted prisoners the right to vote. I agree with them in principle, and draw almost the opposite …

Political Ads on TV

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Sunday, 21 April 2013 at 9:53 am The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights is likely to rule tomorrow against the British ban on political advertising on television. Jacob Rowbottom, fellow at University College, Oxford, expects the Chamber to decide that the ban contravenes the right of freedom of …

Political Ads on TV: As You Were

By John Rentoul Eagle Eye Monday, 22 April 2013 at 11:25 am Although most informed observers thought the European Court of Human Rights would rule against the UK’s ban on political advertising on television, the Grand Chamber has done the opposite. By the narrowest margin of nine votes to eight it has ruled that the ban …