The Justice Secretary hit out as he unveiled details of a planned overhaul of the Human Rights Act.

       Mr Raab said the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights imposes too many “obligations on the state” rather than simply defending individuals from “undue interference”.

       He warned that foreign criminals are also using the Act’s “right to family life” clause to frustrate deportation orders. There are up to 200 cases of this a year, he said.

       He added: “We want the Supreme Court to have a -last word on interpreting the laws of the land, not the Strasbourg court.”

       Proposals to shake up the Human Rights Act will likely go before MPs next spring.