Is It Time for the UK to Exit the ECHR?

Tugendhat’s Warning: Don’t Turn The Tory Blue into Reform… Blue?

Tom Tugendhat is sounding the alarm at the Tory party’s annual conference, warning that if the Conservatives keep drifting to the right, they might as well slap a "Reform UK" badge on the party. His message? The Tories don’t need to become Nigel Farage’s fan club to win back voters—they just need to rebuild trust. After July’s election debacle, where the Conservatives lost ground to the Lib Dems on the left and Reform UK on the right, Tugendhat argues that the public wasn’t swooning over Ed Davey or Farage; they were simply fed up with 14 years of Tory rule.

When asked if he’d consider teaming up with Farage to win back those voters, Tugendhat was clear: “My job is to reform the Conservative Party, not to become Reform.” No mixed messages there.

Kemi Badenoch also chimed in with her two cents, dismissing Reform UK politicians as “not real conservatives, and not serious people,” though she made it clear that Reform voters are still very much on her radar. “They’re our people,” she said, signalling that the Tories need to reconnect with disillusioned voters—not morph into their rival party.

As the leadership race heats up, it’s clear the battle isn’t just against Labour or the Lib Dems. It’s also about keeping the Conservative Party... well, conservative.

Is It Time for the UK to Exit the ECHR?

It wouldn’t be a Tory conference without a bit of drama, and this year’s plot twist comes courtesy of Robert Jenrick. The former home office minister hasn’t minced his words, warning party activists that unless the Conservatives back leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the party might not even make it to the next election. According to him, their survival depends on it. No pressure, then.

Jenrick’s rallying cry comes against the backdrop of ongoing debates about the Channel migrant crisis, with more than 24,000 people crossing the English Channel this year alone. In his view, the ECHR is making it “impossible to secure our borders.” Bold claims, but he’s not alone in thinking that the convention’s human rights protections are a little too generous when it comes to preventing deportations—especially of those labelled dangerous or even criminal. You know, just the type you’d ideally like to have fewer legal hoops around.

Jenrick also pointed out that his own leadership bid rests on two main pillars: leaving the ECHR and capping annual net migration at 100,000. He suggests that the ECHR is too limiting on the UK’s ability to deal with those arriving by boat. After all, the ECHR threw quite a few legal challenges at the government’s Rwanda deportation scheme, resulting in flights being grounded and the policy, ultimately, not taking off. It’s no wonder many on the right side of the Conservative Party are ready to pack up and wave goodbye to the convention.

But it’s not all one-sided. Kemi Badenoch, another Tory leadership hopeful, isn’t exactly keen on the idea. She thinks it would only lead to more “legal wrangling” and a potential showdown in the House of Lords. So, while Jenrick paints leaving the ECHR as the magic solution, Badenoch argues it’s more of a bureaucratic rabbit hole than a game-changer.

Whether Jenrick’s argument wins over the crowd or not, it’s clear that the future of the UK’s 71-year relationship with the ECHR is now a key fault line in the Tory leadership race. If nothing else, it’ll certainly keep the conference attendees awake in Birmingham this week.