amp.theguardian.com Open in urlscan Pro
2a04:4e42:400::367 Public Scan

Back to summary

URL:
https://amp.theguardian.com/law/article/2024/may/12/human-rights-act-will-be-safe-with-a-labour-government
Submission: On May 13 via manual (May 13th 2024, 1:38:48 am UTC) from US — Scanned from NL

Form analysis
2 forms found in the DOM

POST

<form id="reminderForm" data-amp-bind-hidden="epicState.reminder.hideReminderForm" method="post" action-xhr="https://contributions.guardianapis.com/amp/set_reminder" target="_blank" custom-validation-reporting="interact-and-submit"
  enctype="application/x-www-form-urlencoded"
  on="submit-success:AMP.setState({epicState:{reminder:{hideReminderCta: true, hideSuccessMessage: false, hideReminderForm: true, headerText: 'Thank you! Your reminder is set.'}}});submit-error:AMP.setState({epicState:{reminder:{hideFailureMessage:false}}})">
  <div class="dcr-amp-1ierio3">Email address</div>
  <div visible-when-invalid="typeMismatch" validation-for="email" class="dcr-amp-17pm0et"><svg viewBox="0 0 30 30" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" class="dcr-amp-1wc9szu">
      <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd"
        d="M14.41 5L4 22.057l.668.943h20.664l.668-.943L15.59 5h-1.18zm-.063 12.178h1.306l.621-6.917-.856-.728h-.835l-.857.728.62 6.917zM15 18.452c.7 0 1.274.573 1.274 1.274 0 .7-.573 1.274-1.274 1.274-.7 0-1.274-.573-1.274-1.274 0-.7.573-1.274 1.274-1.274z">
      </path>
    </svg>Please enter a valid email address</div>
  <div visible-when-invalid="valueMissing" validation-for="email" class="dcr-amp-17pm0et"><svg viewBox="0 0 30 30" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" class="dcr-amp-1wc9szu">
      <path fill-rule="evenodd" clip-rule="evenodd"
        d="M14.41 5L4 22.057l.668.943h20.664l.668-.943L15.59 5h-1.18zm-.063 12.178h1.306l.621-6.917-.856-.728h-.835l-.857.728.62 6.917zM15 18.452c.7 0 1.274.573 1.274 1.274 0 .7-.573 1.274-1.274 1.274-.7 0-1.274-.573-1.274-1.274 0-.7.573-1.274 1.274-1.274z">
      </path>
    </svg>Please enter your email address</div><input type="hidden" name="isPreContribution" value="true"><input type="hidden" name="reminderDate" data-amp-bind-value="epicState.reminder.reminderPeriod"><input id="email" name="email" type="email"
    required="" class="dcr-amp-vkf908"><button on="tap:reminderForm.submit" class="dcr-amp-jsu292">Set a reminder<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 20 17.89" preserveAspectRatio="xMinYMid" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"
      class="dcr-amp-p651nl">
      <path d="M20 9.35l-9.08 8.54-.86-.81 6.54-7.31H0V8.12h16.6L10.06.81l.86-.81L20 8.51v.84z"></path>
    </svg></button>
  <div data-amp-bind-hidden="epicState.reminder.hideFailureMessage" class="dcr-amp-wkgbto">Sorry we couldn't set a reminder for you this time. Please try again later.</div>
  <div class="dcr-amp-1g5g2fb">We will send you a maximum of two emails in <span data-amp-bind-text="epicState.reminder.reminderLabel"></span>. To find out what personal data we collect and how we use it, view our
    <a target="_blank" href="https://www.theguardian.com/help/privacy-policy">Privacy Policy</a>.</div>
</form>

POST

<form
  on="submit-success:AMP.setState({epicState:{reminder:{hideReminderCta: true, hideSuccessMessage: false, hideReminderForm: true, headerText: 'Thank you! Your reminder is set.'}}});submit-error:AMP.setState({epicState:{reminder:{hideFailureMessage:false}}})"
  enctype="application/x-www-form-urlencoded" custom-validation-reporting="interact-and-submit" target="_blank" action-xhr="https://contributions.guardianapis.com/amp/set_reminder" method="post" i-amphtml-binding=""
  data-amp-bind-hidden="epicState.reminder.hideReminderForm" id="reminderForm" i-amphtml-key="15" novalidate="" class="i-amphtml-form">
  <div class="dcr-amp-1ierio3">Email address</div>
  <div class="dcr-amp-17pm0et" validation-for="email" visible-when-invalid="typeMismatch"><svg class="dcr-amp-1wc9szu" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 30 30">
      <path
        d="M14.41 5L4 22.057l.668.943h20.664l.668-.943L15.59 5h-1.18zm-.063 12.178h1.306l.621-6.917-.856-.728h-.835l-.857.728.62 6.917zM15 18.452c.7 0 1.274.573 1.274 1.274 0 .7-.573 1.274-1.274 1.274-.7 0-1.274-.573-1.274-1.274 0-.7.573-1.274 1.274-1.274z"
        clip-rule="evenodd" fill-rule="evenodd"></path>
    </svg>Please enter a valid email address</div>
  <div class="dcr-amp-17pm0et" validation-for="email" visible-when-invalid="valueMissing"><svg class="dcr-amp-1wc9szu" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 30 30">
      <path
        d="M14.41 5L4 22.057l.668.943h20.664l.668-.943L15.59 5h-1.18zm-.063 12.178h1.306l.621-6.917-.856-.728h-.835l-.857.728.62 6.917zM15 18.452c.7 0 1.274.573 1.274 1.274 0 .7-.573 1.274-1.274 1.274-.7 0-1.274-.573-1.274-1.274 0-.7.573-1.274 1.274-1.274z"
        clip-rule="evenodd" fill-rule="evenodd"></path>
    </svg>Please enter your email address</div><input value="true" name="isPreContribution" type="hidden"><input i-amphtml-binding="" data-amp-bind-value="epicState.reminder.reminderPeriod" name="reminderDate" type="hidden" i-amphtml-key="16"
    value="2024-06-01"><input class="dcr-amp-vkf908" required="" type="email" name="email" id="email"><button class="dcr-amp-jsu292" on="tap:reminderForm.submit">Set a reminder<svg class="dcr-amp-p651nl" aria-hidden="true"
      preserveAspectRatio="xMinYMid" viewBox="0 0 20 17.89" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
      <path d="M20 9.35l-9.08 8.54-.86-.81 6.54-7.31H0V8.12h16.6L10.06.81l.86-.81L20 8.51v.84z"></path>
    </svg></button>
  <div class="dcr-amp-wkgbto" i-amphtml-binding="" data-amp-bind-hidden="epicState.reminder.hideFailureMessage" i-amphtml-key="17" hidden="">Sorry we couldn't set a reminder for you this time. Please try again later.</div>
  <div class="dcr-amp-1g5g2fb">We will send you a maximum of two emails in <span i-amphtml-binding="" data-amp-bind-text="epicState.reminder.reminderLabel" i-amphtml-key="18">June 2024</span>. To find out what personal data we collect and how we use
    it, view our <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/help/privacy-policy" target="_blank">Privacy Policy</a>.</div>
</form>

Text Content

User Consent Prompt
Focus Prompt
Support us
The Guardian - Back to homeThe Guardian: news website of the year
 * News
 * Opinion
 * Sport
 * Culture
 * Lifestyle

Show captionA rally in London last year. ‘The act will be in danger from a
future Conservative administration if the party’s soul is captured by the
right.’ Photograph: Getty


HUMAN RIGHTS ACT WILL BE SAFE WITH A LABOUR GOVERNMENT



James Toon, who helped develop the act in the 1990s, responds to an article by
Shami Chakrabarti on the pressing need for equal treatment

Sun 12 May 2024 17.33 CEST
 * Share on Facebook
 * Share on Twitter
 * Share via Email

I read with interest Shami Chakrabarti’s article (The big idea: why we need
human rights now more than ever, 6 May). The context for her article is the
Conservative right’s repeated calls to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998. This
was one of the landmark statutes of the first Blair administration, and its
legal and constitutional significance is immense.

Although now retired, I was a member of the Home Office bill team that developed
the policy broadly set out in the 1996 Labour document Bringing Rights Home,
supported ministers during its passage through parliament, and started work on
its implementation. I had several discussions with Jack Straw, the then home
secretary.

Ad


I know from these discussions just how deeply committed Straw (and Derry Irvine
as lord chancellor) were to the cause of human rights in the UK. That commitment
remained, even when the Blair government’s enthusiasm for civil libertarian
projects waned in the next year or two. Their experience with the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 may have been the final nail in the coffin.

I have traced the development and nuances of the Conservative position on the
Human Rights Act since 2010. I agree that, politically, the act will be in
danger from a future Conservative administration if the party’s soul is captured
by the right.

But I am as sure as I can be that the act will be safe in the hands of a future
Labour government – even one as sensitive to pressure from the right as the
current party leadership seems to be.
James Toon
Godalming, Surrey

• Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us
your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.


{{#ticker}}

{{topLeft}}

{{bottomLeft}}

{{topRight}}

{{bottomRight}}

{{#goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}

{{/goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}

{{/ticker}}


{{HEADING}}

{{#paragraphs}}

{{.}}

{{/paragraphs}}{{highlightedText}}
{{#choiceCards}}


One-timeMonthlyAnnual

Other
{{/choiceCards}}
{{#cta}}{{text}}{{/cta}}


Email address
Please enter a valid email address
Please enter your email address
Set a reminder
Sorry we couldn't set a reminder for you this time. Please try again later.
We will send you a maximum of two emails in . To find out what personal data we
collect and how we use it, view our Privacy Policy.
We will be in touch to remind you to contribute. Look out for a message in your
inbox in . If you have any questions about contributing, please contact us.


THIS IS WHAT WE'RE UP AGAINST

Teams of lawyers from the rich and powerful trying to stop us publishing stories
they don’t want you to see. 



Lobby groups with opaque funding who are determined to undermine facts about the
climate emergency and other established science. 



Authoritarian states with no regard for the freedom of the press.



Bad actors spreading disinformation online to undermine democracy. 



***



But we have something powerful on our side. 



We’ve got you. 



The Guardian is funded by readers, like you in the Netherlands, and the only
person who decides what we publish is our editor. 



If you want to join us in our mission to share independent, global journalism to
the world, we’d love to have you on side.





Please choose to support us today. It only takes a minute and you can cancel at
any time. Thank you.



One-timeMonthlyAnnual

€4 per month€10 per monthOther
Continue
Remind me in June

Remind me in June 2024
Email address
Please enter a valid email address
Please enter your email address
Set a reminder
Sorry we couldn't set a reminder for you this time. Please try again later.
We will send you a maximum of two emails in June 2024. To find out what personal
data we collect and how we use it, view our Privacy Policy.
We will be in touch to remind you to contribute. Look out for a message in your
inbox in June 2024. If you have any questions about contributing, please contact
us.
Topics
 * Human Rights Act

 * Human rights
 * Conservatives
 * Labour
 * letters

 * Share on Facebook
 * Share on Twitter
 * Share via Email
 * Share on LinkedIn
 * Share on WhatsApp
 * Share on Messenger

View on theguardian.com
{{#showContent}}
{{displayName}}
{{#description}}
{{description}}
{{/description}}{{#content}}{{#headline}}


{{#ISVIDEO}}{{/ISVIDEO}}{{#ISGALLERY}}{{/ISGALLERY}}{{#ISAUDIO}}{{/ISAUDIO}}{{#ISCOMMENT}}{{/ISCOMMENT}}{{HEADLINE}}

{{#isComment}}
{{byline}}
{{/isComment}}
{{#showWebPublicationDate}} {{webPublicationDate}}{{/showWebPublicationDate}}
{{headline}}
{{/headline}}{{/content}}
{{/showContent}}
Show more
Related stories


WE MUST NOT LET POLITICS TRAMPLE ON REFUGEES’ HUMAN RIGHTS


We must not let politics trample on refugees’ human rights


THE TORY BILL OF RIGHTS IS A GIFT TO THE WORLD’S TYRANTS


The Tory bill of rights is a gift to the world’s tyrants


HUMAN RIGHTS ARE BEING ATTACKED BY THE GOVERNMENT, NOT FINE-TUNED


Human rights are being attacked by the government, not fine-tuned


REVIEW OF HUMAN RIGHTS ACT ASKS THE WRONG QUESTIONS


Review of Human Rights Act asks the wrong questions
{{#showContent}}
{{displayName}}
{{#description}}
{{description}}
{{/description}}{{#content}}{{#headline}}


{{#ISVIDEO}}{{/ISVIDEO}}{{#ISGALLERY}}{{/ISGALLERY}}{{#ISAUDIO}}{{/ISAUDIO}}{{#ISCOMMENT}}{{/ISCOMMENT}}{{HEADLINE}}

{{#isComment}}
{{byline}}
{{/isComment}}
{{#showWebPublicationDate}} {{webPublicationDate}}{{/showWebPublicationDate}}
{{headline}}
{{/headline}}{{/content}}
{{/showContent}}
Show more

{{#showContent}}
{{displayName}}
{{#description}}
{{description}}
{{/description}}{{#content}}{{#headline}}


{{#ISVIDEO}}{{/ISVIDEO}}{{#ISGALLERY}}{{/ISGALLERY}}{{#ISAUDIO}}{{/ISAUDIO}}{{#ISCOMMENT}}{{/ISCOMMENT}}{{HEADLINE}}

{{#isComment}}
{{byline}}
{{/isComment}}
{{#showWebPublicationDate}} {{webPublicationDate}}{{/showWebPublicationDate}}
{{headline}}
{{/headline}}{{/content}}
{{/showContent}}
Show more
most viewed


PUTIN REMOVES SERGEI SHOIGU AS RUSSIA’S DEFENCE MINISTER


Putin removes Sergei Shoigu as Russia’s defence minister


TRUMP PRAISES FICTIONAL SERIAL KILLER HANNIBAL LECTER DURING RALLY SPEECH


Trump praises fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter during rally speech


CHEESE, PLEASE! EIGHT EVERYDAY FOODS THAT ARE GREAT FOR GUT HEALTH – AND AREN’T
KIMCHI, KOMBUCHA, ’KRAUT OR KEFIR


Cheese, please! Eight everyday foods that are great for gut health – and aren’t
kimchi, kombucha, ’kraut or kefir


FIERCE BATTLES IN GAZA AS ISRAELI FORCES ATTACK HAMAS MILITANTS


Fierce battles in Gaza as Israeli forces attack Hamas militants


EUROVISION LOSES ALMOST A QUARTER OF UK VIEWERS COMPARED WITH 2023


Eurovision loses almost a quarter of UK viewers compared with 2023
{{#showContent}}
{{displayName}}
{{#description}}
{{description}}
{{/description}}{{#content}}{{#headline}}


{{#ISVIDEO}}{{/ISVIDEO}}{{#ISGALLERY}}{{/ISGALLERY}}{{#ISAUDIO}}{{/ISAUDIO}}{{#ISCOMMENT}}{{/ISCOMMENT}}{{HEADLINE}}

{{#isComment}}
{{byline}}
{{/isComment}}
{{#showWebPublicationDate}} {{webPublicationDate}}{{/showWebPublicationDate}}
{{headline}}
{{/headline}}{{/content}}
{{/showContent}}
Show more

 * About us
 * Contact us
 * Complaints and corrections
 * SecureDrop
 * Work for us
 * Privacy settings
 * Privacy policy
 * Cookie policy
 * Terms & conditions
 * Help

 * All topics
 * All writers
 * Modern Slavery Act
 * Digital newspaper archive
 * Facebook
 * Twitter

 * Advertise with us
 * Search jobs
 * Patrons

Support the Guardian
Support us
Back to top
© 2024 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights
reserved.
Close the sidebar
   {{ #topLevelSections }}


 * {{ TITLE }}
   
      {{ #subSections }}
    * {{ title }}
      {{ /subSections }}

   {{ /topLevelSections }}

   {{ #readerRevenueLinks }}
 * {{ title }}
   {{ /readerRevenueLinks }}
 * Sign in / Register


SWITCH EDITION

   {{ #editions }}
 * {{ displayName }}
   {{ /editions }}

   {{ #secondarySections }}
 * {{ title }}
   {{ /secondarySections }}


Close the sidebar

amp.theguardian.com Open in urlscan Pro 2a04:4e42:400::367 Public Scan

Form analysis 2 forms found in the DOM

POST

POST

Text Content

amp.theguardian.com Open in urlscan Pro
2a04:4e42:400::367 Public Scan

Form analysis
2 forms found in the DOM