At the start of this year there was a suggestion that the Government might seek to derogate from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). This was because Home Secretary David Blunkett felt that the convention – incorporated in UK law by the Human Rights Act – limited his freedom of action in dealing with asylum seekers. While this may just be the product of a government responding to a media outcry, derogations are a possibility.
Individual privacy remains an issue. In the US there have been suggestions that strikes in the public sector should be banned. The current international security situation provides the backdrop which could provide political momentum for these changes. These are two areas where derogation is a possibility.
