Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
223. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 341 and 342 of 14 April 2026, if she will confirm, specifically what judgments are of concern and in what respect; and the position regarding norms that should be disapplied or modified and with what they should be replaced with. [29563/26]
View answerOn 10 December the Ministers’ Deputies, in follow-up to an informal Conference of Ministers of Justice of the Council of Europe, required the Steering Committee for Human Rights (CDDH) to prepare elements for a political declaration reaffirming the obligation to ensure the effective enjoyment of the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights to everyone within the jurisdiction of member States in the context of the contemporary challenges posed both by irregular migration and by the situation of foreigners convicted of serious offences, taking duly into account in particular governments’ fundamental responsibility to ensure national security and public safety. The CDDH was invited to report back before 22 March 2026 to allow for the Ministers’ Deputies to finalise the declaration to be submitted, together with the other relevant documents, for adoption at the 135th Session of the Committee of Ministers in Moldova on 14-15 May 2026.
This initiative follows on from growing concerns amongst Council of Europe Member States about ensuring a fair and effective migration system, while fully respecting the integrity of the ECHR and the independence of the European Court of Human Rights. The Government believes it is important to acknowledge those concerns and, with a view to promoting effective multilateralism, that such discussions take place within the institutional framework of the Council of Europe. Ireland has thus been constructively engaging with Member States with a view to achieving a consensus around a political declaration that is fully consistent with and respectful of the Convention. The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration and the Minister for European Affairs discussed the political declaration process with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe when he visited Ireland on 24 April.
In preparing possible elements for a political declaration, the Member States of the Council of Europe have considered a number of migration-related issues, which are considered to represent significant, complex challenges in various Member States and were either unforeseen at the time the Convention was drafted or have since evolved significantly, as follows: expulsion of foreign nationals convicted of serious criminal offences and extradition cases (and issues arising under Article 3 and Article 8 of the Convention in this regard); mass arrivals of migrants by land and sea; instrumentalization of migration; decision-making in migration cases; and innovative solutions to address migration. In respect of each of these situations, consideration has been given to relevant Convention provisions and principles and jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, encompassing several judgments. The CDDH outcome document of 20 March 2026, which is a publicly available document on the Council of Europe website, provides further detail on this. Throughout this process, the importance of upholding the integrity of the Convention system, including the universality of human rights and the absolute non-derogable nature of the prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading or punishment contained in Article 3, and of respecting the integrity and independence of the European Court of Human Rights has been underlined by Member States including Ireland.
