Observer on ECHR and EU/Observer verwechselt EGMR und EU

The Observer reports on calls for prisoners in the UK to be given the vote.

The government faces being hauled before the European court of human rights unless it gives prisoners the right to vote as a matter of urgency.

The article correctly refers to Strasbourg and to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. But what has the term Eurosceptics to do with this?

But any move that recognises the ECHR ruling on prisoner voting is likely to spark an angry reaction from Eurosceptics. In the House of Lords last year Lord Tebbit attacked the measure as a form of “judicial imperialism” effectively foisted on the UK by a foreign court.

A challenge within the UK would first have to go through the UK courts, which are now subject to the Human Rights Act, so the matter would probably not even reach Strasbourg.

The commenter Sverdlovsk writes:

The ECHR is not an EU institution.

It is part of the Council of Europe, which includes countries such as Russia and Turkey. It is an institution that is strongly ‘British’ in character, insofar as it was set up with strong British involvement and support – among others Winston Churchill was a strong supporter.

It’s sad that people will use this as yet another ‘reason to hate the EU’ (cf Raptorjezus), but this is what always seems to happen on these threads.

Once again, the ECHR has nothing to do with the EU.

2 thoughts on “Observer on ECHR and EU/Observer verwechselt EGMR und EU

  1. It’s already gone through Strasbourg. The UK is in trouble for non-implementation of a ruling.

    The Observer itself recently ran a piece castigating the ECHR as an example of
    EU interference in UK affairs.

    • Thanks – I missed that. I see the ECHR decided in 2005. I think the last piece I remember was in a Guardian blog. Surely it’s not only the Guardian and the Observer that get these things wrong?

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