"When Keir Starmer and Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, argue that asylum protections must be rewritten for a new era, they are not simply adjusting policy. Their message is clear: hardening rules so that fewer people receive protection is the way to restore confidence in their leadership. They present this as measured and responsible, even progressive. But what they propose is not a new centre ground; it is a retreat into a politics that regards some lives as less worthy than others."
"an occasion created to commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the recognition, set down by the postwar generation, that dignity must not depend on borders, status or political fashion. Human rights were never designed only for safe, comfortable times. They were written precisely for moments like this: when pressure mounts, when scapegoating becomes tempting, when compassion is portrayed as weakness."
"UK ministers are seeking to reinterpret or restrict protections enshrined in the European convention on human rights (ECHR) including the absolute ban on torture and inhuman or degrading treatment under article 3, and article 8, which protects the right to a private life and a family life. These proposals would strip fundamental protections from people fleeing war, persecution or serious harm. Article 3 contains no exceptions. Once you accept that some suffering is acceptable for some people, the principle collapses for everyone."
Keir Starmer and Mette Frederiksen propose rewriting asylum protections to harden rules so fewer people receive protection, framed as measured, responsible and progressive. The proposals represent a political retreat that treats some lives as less worthy and risks eroding universal dignity. The timing coincides with UK ministers visiting Strasbourg on International Human Rights Day, contradicting postwar recognition that dignity must not depend on borders or status. Reports indicate attempts to reinterpret or restrict ECHR protections, including the absolute ban on torture under Article 3 and the right to private and family life under Article 8, which would remove safeguards for people fleeing war, persecution or serious harm.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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