The House of Lords EU Justice Sub-Committee has exchanged letters, dated December 2018 and January 2019, with the Government about the Political Declaration. The correspondence relates to a change in wording to the Declaration regarding the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
In December 2018 the Committee wrote to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice David Gauke, seeking clarification about the change in wording.
In January 2019 Edward Argar MP, Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice, replied, pledging an unchanging commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms. However, this letter did not explain the reasoning behind the change in wording. The letter also made reference to revisiting the Human Rights Act once the process of leaving the EU is concluded – the Committee said it was ‘concerned’ by the lack of assurances that the Government is committed to the Human Rights Act after Brexit.
