UK Parliament Votes Against Farage’s Bill on Sovereignty
The left-leaning majority in Britain’s parliament rejected a bill proposed by Brexiteer Nigel Farage on Wednesday. The bill aimed to reclaim sovereignty over democratic institutions and control over Britain’s borders from the European Convention on Human Rights.
Even though Britain officially left the European Union in 2020, various governments in London have continued to adhere to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), subjecting themselves to the directives of the Strasbourg court.
While the ECHR operates separately from the EU, it directly influences immigration matters in the UK. It is frequently challenged in legal cases brought by lawyers advocating for open borders, who argue against the Home Office’s efforts to deport illegal or criminal migrants.
Farage, leading the Reform Britain Party, faced heckling from left-wing MPs during his address in the House of Commons. He urged his fellow members to honor their Brexit commitments, restore national sovereignty, and ensure that parliamentary power remains supreme.
“We voted overwhelmingly for the British people to reclaim our sovereignty… It’s essential that this chamber regains its power to legislate,” he asserted.
He added, “In terms of border control—who should be allowed to live and work in this country—it shouldn’t be up to judges in Strasbourg. It’s simply not right for a handful of jurists, who can interpret law differently, to decide these issues that have traditionally been governed by English common law.”
Farage challenged his colleagues, questioning whether they believed the UK was capable of making its own laws, citing historical principles like the Magna Carta.
Ultimately, the vote showed a significant division, with 96 MPs supporting his bill, while 154 opposed it. The Conservative Party had previously resisted leaving the treaty but, recently, its leader, Kemi Badenoch, aligned with Farage’s perspective on exiting the European Organization. On Wednesday, 87 Conservative MPs sided with Farage, but a coalition of 64 anti-Brexit Liberal Democrats and 63 Labour MPs opposed the bill.
The ECHR has notably hindered the Conservative Party’s attempts to tackle illegal immigration, including its last-minute intervention that blocked migrant removal flights to Rwanda in summer 2022.
Under Boris Johnson’s government, there were negotiations for Rwanda to host illegal immigrants, aiming to deter future immigration. However, legal challenges following ECHR intervention ultimately led to the cancellation of this arrangement after the Labour Party took power last year.
Besides its direct involvement in UK immigration policy, the ECHR often plays a role in individual deportation cases, sometimes allowing serious offenders to avoid removal based on questionable human rights arguments.
This year, one instance involved a convicted Pakistani pedophile who successfully argued against deportation, claiming that returning home could expose him to harm due to his “consumption of alcohol.” Another case featured an Albanian illegal immigrant permitted to remain in the UK after a judge noted that deportation would hinder his “right to private and family life” because his child had a preference for local food.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed a willingness to reconsider the interpretation of the treaty but pushed back against a fundamental withdrawal. Some senior ministers have likened exiting the ECHR to adopting policies of “authoritarian” regimes like Belarus and Russia.
This sentiment was reinforced by Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey, who pointed out that only Russia has withdrawn from the ECHR under Putin’s leadership, hinting at the dangerous implications of such a move.
