European Convention on Human Rights
The European Convention was drafted after the Second World
War to protect the rights and freedoms of the people of Europe. The
United Kingdom was one of the first countries to sign up to the
Convention in 1953. Today most European countries have signed up
and these countries make up the Council of Europe. The Council is a
separate organisation to the European Union.
The Convention is divided into “articles” and
over the years has been supplemented by protocols agreed by the
Council of Europe. Some of the protocols deal with procedural
issues, but some guarantee further rights in addition to those in
the Convention. The UK has signed up to some but not all the
protocols
The European Court of Human Rights is the international court
set up to interpret and apply the Convention. It is based in
Strasbourg, France.
Human Rights Act 1998
Since 1966, individuals have had the right to bring cases
against the British Government in the European Court of Human
Rights. This can be a lengthy and costly process. To address such
practical difficulties and to allow individuals to obtain redress
for breaches of the Convention in the British courts, the
Government passed the Human Rights Act 1998 which came in to force
on 2 October 2000.
The Human Rights Act gives individuals the right to take
proceedings in the domestic courts if they think their rights under
the Convention have been (or are going to be) breached. It gives
effect to most (but not all) of the rights and freedoms guaranteed
under the Convention in two main ways:
The Human Rights Act requires the courts to take into account
past decisions of the European Court of Human Rights when deciding
cases under the Human Rights Act.
Action to take on an enquiry or complaint mentioning Human
Rights
The Human Rights Act requires public authorities to act in a
way that does not breach Convention rights. The Act does not define
the term “public Authority” but government departments,
including HMRC, are all public authorities for the purposes of the
Act.
If you receive a complaint or enquiry mentioning human
rights, the Human Rights Act or the European Convention on Human
Rights, suspend action on your cases and refer the matter
immediately to PSN Technical at Newcastle with full details.
Data Protection Act or Freedom of Information Act enquiries
or complaints
Similarly any enquiry or complaint which mentions Data
Protection or Freedom of Information issues should be acted upon
immediately, seeking advice where appropriate.
