Council of Europe chief: Human rights treaty must evolve, not erode

The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) must evolve in response to global changes, while continuing to uphold its founding principles, according to Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

In an interview with The Times, Berset acknowledged increasing political criticism of the 75-year-old treaty but cautioned against hasty or superficial reform.

Berset, who assumed office earlier this year, emphasised that while the ECHR remains a cornerstone of democratic governance across 46 countries, including the UK, it should not be seen as beyond revision. “We are witnessing a world where things are changing rapidly,” he said. “It is accelerating. We see this, and it means that it is normal that we must also adapt to this. We need adaptation. We need a discussion about the rules that we want to have, and there is no taboo.”

He stressed, however, that any reform must remain anchored in the core democratic values and legal standards that the convention was founded to defend. “I see the necessity to adapt,” Berset said, “but we must also do this respecting our core values.”

His comments come amid mounting political pressure in several European countries to redefine the scope of the ECHR, particularly in the context of rising migration. The UK’s ruling Conservative Party is expected to intensify its stance, with party leader Kemi Badenoch preparing to argue that Britain should consider withdrawing from the convention altogether. According to The Guardian, in a speech expected on June 6, Badenoch will assert: “I have thought long and hard about this, and I am increasingly of the view that we will need to leave, because I am yet to see a clear and coherent route to change within our current legal structures.”

Her position reflects growing discontent among right-leaning governments who see the ECHR as obstructing national migration policies. At the same time, human rights groups have warned that such rhetoric—and especially any move toward withdrawal—could seriously undermine protections for vulnerable groups, including refugees fleeing war and persecution. They argue the ECHR plays a vital role in safeguarding rights in areas such as detention conditions, pushbacks at borders, and surveillance.

The debate intensified last month when the leaders of nine European countries—including Italy and Denmark—published a joint letter calling for more national discretion over migration policy within the ECHR framework. Signed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, and the leaders of Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, the letter, dated 22 May, urged an “open-minded conversation about the interpretation of the ECHR.”

While the leaders reaffirmed the enduring relevance of the convention’s principles, they argued that the global context has fundamentally changed: “We now live in a globalised world where people migrate across borders on a completely different scale.”

As calls for reform grow louder, Berset’s message appears aimed at reconciling the desire for national flexibility with the imperative of preserving the ECHR’s integrity. The future of the convention, and Europe’s collective approach to human rights, now hangs in the balance amid intensifying political and humanitarian pressures.

By Tamilla Hasanova