One of the most emotive pieces of UK legislation, regardless of its actual effect, is the 1998 Human Rights Act. The Blair-era law allowed for the European Convention on Human Rights, to which the UK was already long a signatory, to be brought into domestic legislation.

Although the ECHR is distinct from the European Union and Brexit, a common theme of taking back control from unelected foreigners — in this case, judges at the Strasbourg court — persists among Boris Johnson’s government.

It now wants to “update” the act, ultimately replacing it with a homegrown Bill of Rights.

Despite grandiose claims of “far-reaching” reform by the justice secretary, Dominic Raab, a government consultation published on Tuesday pushes relatively modest proposals, read in isolation.

This article was originally posted on ft.com