Farage quizzes Mark Francois about ECHR membership
0 seconds of 44 seconds Volume 90%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard Shortcuts EnabledDisabled
Shortcuts Open/Close / or ?
Play/Pause SPACE
Increase Volume ↑
Decrease Volume ↓
Seek Forward →
Seek Backward ←
Captions On/Off c
Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreen f
Mute/Unmute m
Decrease Caption Size -
Increase Caption Size + or =
Seek % 0-9
Next Up
Nigel Farage involved in row with activist over ECHR
01:01
twitter facebook Email Link https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/0VNLDp1B Copied
Live
00:00
00:44
00:44
More Videos
01:01
Nigel Farage involved in row with activist over ECHR
01:21
Nigel Farage quizzed over his future plans
00:40
Mark Francois accuses Farage of trying to 'blackmail' Johnson
00:40
Nigel Farage not 'treated with respect he deserves' says Francois
00:50
Nigel Farage quizzes Remainer caller on Brexit 'promises'
03:17
Nigel Farage took aim at Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande
Close
The Conservative Party could be heading for a rare moment of consensus over the contentious human rights debate ahead of the election.
Speaking on GB News last night, right winger Mark Francois suggested hardline MPs could find common ground with members of the more centrist One Nation caucus and include a bold offer on the European Convention on Human Rights.
by Taboola by Taboola
Sponsored Link Sponsored Link
Promoted Links Promoted Links
GoSearches
New Small Electric Car For Seniors - The Price May Surprise YouGoSearches
Undo
Mr Francois said he’s spoken to members of the One Nation group who would back a plan to include a manifesto promise to renegotiate the ECHR, but warn that failure to achieve significant reforms would see the UK leave the controversial treaty.
However a One Nation source suggested that while the party could agree over pushing for reforms of the treaty to claw back border sovereignty, there's far less unity over calls to quit.
The apparent breakthrough in Tory Party unity comes after a judge ruled that parts of Rishi Sunak’s flagship Rwanda policy should not apply in Northern Ireland because it clashes with the Windsor Framework and is incompatible with the ECHR.
Sponsored
primenutritionsecrets.com
primenutritionsecrets.comMD: Building Muscle After 60 Comes Down To This 1 Thing
Undo
by Taboola by Taboola
READ MORE: Tell us if you if you think the UK should have its own version of the ECHR
Stay up-to-date with the latest Politics news Join us on WhatsApp Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
Mark Francois suggested the Tories could unite over his ECHR proposal (Image: GB News)
With Nigel Farage suggesting that the Conservatives remain as split on the ECHR as they were on Brexit, Mr Francois insisted there could be agreement across the party ahead of the election.
He told viewers: “Not quite. What I’ve just said - we should have in the manifesto that we should renegotiate and if renegotiation fails we should leave - you would find (get them on here and ask them) that there are prominent members of the One Nation Group who would sign up to that”.
“How do I know? I’ve talked to them about it.
“So I think you could probably get Damian Green and I to agree on that form of words or something very similar to it, going into a general election.”
Mr Francois couched his prediction by asking whether that cross-party backbench unity could extend to the current Cabinet, however.
Don't miss...
Nigel Farage tears into Sunak and Starmer as he makes shock election prediction [LATEST]
Rishi Sunak insists surprise court ruling 'changes nothing' about Rwanda plan [LATEST]
MPs to be banned Parliament if arrested for serious crimes under new change [LATEST]
SUBSCRIBE Invalid email
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
Mr Francois suggested One Nation leader Damian Green could agree (Image: Getty)
Responding to the suggestion, a source from the One Nation caucus agreed that the ECHR “isn’t effectively addressing the challenge of illegal migration”.
“Instead of contemplating an exit, we should take a leading role in reforming it from the inside to ensure it serves the UK and its other member countries.
“Any other discussions are unproductive at this point.”
This suggests that while the party could agree on demanding significant reforms to the European treaty to claw back sovereignty over migrant deportations, unity over any suggestion the Tories could back pulling out of the ECHR is far off the mark at the moment.
Yesterday Rishi Sunak insisted that the high court ruling on Northern Ireland and Rwanda would not derail the Government’s plans.
Trending
He said: “This judgment changes nothing about our operational plans to send illegal migrants to Rwanda this July or the lawfulness of our Safety of Rwanda Act”.
“We continue to work to get regular flights off to Rwanda in the coming weeks and nothing will distract us from that or delivering to the timetable I set out. We must start the flights to stop the boats.
“I have been consistently clear that the commitments in the Belfast (Good Friday) agreement should be interpreted as they were always intended, and not expanded to cover issues like illegal migration.
“We will take all steps to defend that position, including through appeal.”
During his major speech yesterday, Mr Sunak added that if the Strasbourg Court makes him choose between the ECHR and the UK’s security, “I will choose our country’s security every single time”.
Related articles Tory MPs tell Rishi Sunak to ditch smoking ban and focus on voters' priorities David Cameron frantically insists he’s not after Rishi Sunak's job Voters sent tax bombshell warning as Welsh Labour launches spy operation Labour’s defector MP accused of lobbying minister to help sex pest husband Nigel Farage launches new campaign against power grabbing WHO with stark warning