School politics class: Kemi Badenoch announces plan to leave ECHR

This article picked by a teacher with suggested questions is part of the Financial Times free schools access programme. Details/registration here.

Read our full range of politics picks here.

Specification:

• AQA Component 1, Section 3.1.1.1: The nature and sources of the British Constitution: debates about the extent of rights in the UK

• Edexcel Component 1, 1.4: Rights in context: debates on the extent, limits and tensions within the UK’s rights-based culture

Background: what you need to know

As was widely predicted, the Conservative opposition has followed Reform UK in calling for the UK to withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights. This would give the UK more power, they argue, to protect our borders and deport illegal migrants. By contrast, the Labour government has spoken of renegotiating the convention, but would not advocate leaving it.

Click the link below to read the article and then answer the questions:

Kemi Badenoch announces plan to leave ECHR

For the Labour position see: UK’s top lawyer attacks Badenoch over call to leave European human rights treaty

Question in the style of Edexcel Politics Paper 2

• Evaluate the view that the European Convention on Human Rights is an essential safeguard of UK citizens’ rights. You must consider this view and the alternative to this view in a balanced way [30 marks]

TIP: The article mentions the protection of UK borders from illegal migration and the prosecution of army veterans for actions during the Northern Ireland ‘Troubles’. Research the human rights dimension of these issues.

Question in the style of AQA Politics Paper 1

• ‘The European Convention on Human Rights Act is an essential guarantee of UK citizens’ rights.’ Analyse and evaluate this statement [25 marks]

Graham Goodlad, Portsmouth High School