Sunak must resist the bid to sink the ‘stop the boats’ bill

Parliamentary select committees can, on occasion, be wise, impartial and dispassionate. Unfortunately they are also vulnerable to being taken over by an unholy combination of those with an axe to grind, and members of the great and the good unwilling to rock the liberal boat. This is essentially what has happened to the Joint Committee on Human Rights (or JCHR). Its report on the Illegal Migration Bill, published over the weekend, is a case in point.

The ‘Stop the Boats Bill’ aims to make it more difficult for irregular migrants to cross the Channel and then use judicial review and human rights laws as a means of presenting the UK with a fait accompli. It has passed the Commons but faces a rough passage in the Lords, particularly since Suella Braverman admits to a substantial chance that parts of it may be held non-compliant with the ECHR. 

The report from the JCHR – chaired by SNP stalwart Joanna Cherry KC – is unlikely to help matters.