Tory leader Kemi Badenoch fires starting gun for leaving ECHR to make it easier to deport illegal migrants
KEMI Badenoch has fired the starting gun for leaving an international court making it easier to deport illegal migrants.
The Tory leader paved the way for quitting the European Convention on Human Rights, saying officials will start work on leaving.
But the move will provoke fury from some in her own party, following Nigel Farage’s Reform saying they would leave to restore UK sovereignty.
The treaty is key to human rights law with the party chief saying in a speech yesterday that the rules were stopping Britain from being in control of its borders.
Ms Badenoch, who will set up several policy commissions, said: “Let’s start doing the work to see what should be done.”
She gave a huge indication that she is prepared to leave the convention if it stops the UK from doing “what is right” for our national interest.
Speaking to Policy Exchange, she added: “I have always been very clear that the ECHR should not stop us doing what is right for the people of this country and what is in our national interest.
“And if it continues to do so at some point we will probably have to leave.
“What I have not agreed with is deciding we should leave without having a plan for what that looks like and how to do so in a way that makes sense.
“Without rules then things just don’t work.
“But other countries are breaking the rules and we need to get serious about that and not pretend that those things aren’t happening and that’s really what I was us to focus on.”
In his Tory leadership bid last year, Robert Jenrick backed an ECHR exit for the party to survive.
Nigel Farage in his maiden speech in the Commons called for a referendum on leaving the European Court of Human Rights.
The court which was set up in 1959 interprets the ECHR.
A Reform UK spokesman last night said: “Once again Kemi has put party unity ahead of the country.
“She said during her leadership election it would divide her party and clearly that’s still the case.
“Only Reform UK would leave the ECHR and take back control of our immigration and asylum system.”