27 Countries Urge ECHR Not To Block 'Rwanda-Style' Deportations — Summit Seeks Reforms

Twenty-seven European governments, including the United Kingdom, have backed a joint declaration asking the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) not to block offshore return arrangements or deportations of foreign criminals. The statement, due to be published this week, urges changes to how the convention is applied so that human-rights rules do not routinely prevent removal or innovative return agreements with third countries.

What The Declaration Proposes

The British-backed declaration calls for an overhaul of how Articles 3 and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights are interpreted. It suggests reweighting Article 8 (right to family life) to place greater emphasis on the nature and seriousness of offences and limiting Article 3 (prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment) to its most serious applications so that routine deportations are not blocked by concerns such as prison conditions or healthcare.

Summit Response And Next Steps

Draft conclusions from a summit of justice ministers representing the Council of Europe’s 47 members stop short of immediate legal changes and instead promise further discussion on possible reforms. The summit recommends new steps to tackle migrant trafficking, the creation of a committee on migration challenges, and a political declaration reaffirming members’ commitment to migrants’ rights, including measures that address foreign offenders. The political declaration is expected to be signed in Moldova in May.

David Lammy says there is ‘a careful balance’ to be struck between individual rights and the public’s interest - Victoria Jones/Shutterstock

Statements From Leaders

Alain Berset, Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, said the convention must "adapt" to modern migration pressures while warning that the court was "under pressure" and should not be "weaponised — neither against governments nor by them." Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy told ministers in Strasbourg that he had discussed domestic interpretations of human-rights law with more than 20 member states and argued that leaving the ECHR would be a "fake solution."

Practical Context

The UK’s first planned flight to Rwanda was halted in 2022 by a late ECHR injunction. Labour says it will not revive that exact scheme but is pursuing new return agreements with other countries, while the government is prioritising changes to national-level interpretation of the convention rather than attempting a formal rewrite, a process that would take years. Examples cited by officials include Italy’s processing agreement with Albania and Denmark’s shelved deal with Rwanda pending legal clearance. EU governments have also agreed legislation to allow offshore centres for some failed asylum seekers.

Legal And Political Stakes

The joint statement says a "clear starting point" for reform should be that member states can expel foreigners convicted of serious crimes even if they have family ties in the host country, and that timely decisions on deportations should not be prevented. The ECHR underpins the UK’s Human Rights Act, and the government is expected to propose legislation to alter how Article 8 is interpreted domestically and to consider whether to revisit the threshold for Article 3 protections.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, writing with Denmark’s prime minister Mette Frederiksen, has rejected calls to withdraw from the convention and instead argued the ECHR should be modernised as part of a firmer approach to migration. Their joint article was supported by 27 countries, including the UK, Italy, Austria, the Nordic states, much of Eastern Europe and Ukraine.

"Our governments have a duty to guarantee our populations’ human rights and fundamental freedoms," the joint statement says, adding that protecting borders and disrupting smuggling networks is vital to preserving public safety and the values of European societies.