ECHR rules UK parliamentarians’ exercise of duty free from external legal actions – JURIST
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled Tuesday that states do not have a duty to prevent parliamentary privilege from revealing information protected by privacy injunctions, reaffirming the constitutional principle of parliamentary sovereignty.
Well-known British businessman Sir Philip Green brought the challenge to the court, arguing that the UK’s “lack of controls on the use of parliamentary privilege to reveal information subject to an injunction.” According to Green, this violated his right to respect for private life, under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention).
In the judgment, the court held that the UK had no obligation to “prevent parliamentary privilege being used to circumvent a court injunction.” The court’s reasoning is based on the constitutional principle of parliamentary autonomy – the ability to manage its own affairs. This includes the power to adjudicate on the conduct of its members. The court also observed that the majority of member states protect parliamentarians from external legal actions in the course of parliamentary duties or statements in the legislature.
Previously, Green obtained an injunction against the Telegraph to prevent it from publishing material protected by non-disclosure agreements, as well as anonymity orders “to protect the confidentiality of the material” contained in the non-disclosure agreements. The injunction and anonymity orders were granted by the Court of Appeal in line with the right to privacy. The Court of Appeal concluded that publication of the identities and materials by the Telegraph “would cause immediate, substantial and possibly irreversible harm” to all of the parties involved. In 2018, the Telegraph published an article which adhered to the injunction and anonymity orders.
The day after the article was published, member of the Parliament’s House of Lords Lord Peter Hain made a statement in session which revealed Sir Green as the subject of the article, including allegations of “sexual harassment, racist abuse and bullying.” The widely reported statement has rendered the anonymity orders pointless, as Sir Green argued.
The then UK Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Lucy Scott-Moncrieff concluded that Hain did not breach any rules in the Code of Conduct.
