The Essex MP said the Government has just one chance left to save it from electoral disaster
The UK should legislate for a partial opt-out from the ECHR as the main measure for stopping illegal immigration, according to Tory MP Mark Francois.
He told GB News: “Let me give you some feedback from the frontline. I tend to go out canvassing in my constituency twice a month, I was out in the cold on Saturday morning and I got some pretty direct feedback on this…the boats and immigration came up again and again and again.
“We had a bit on the cost of living crisis, we had a bit on the NHS, but that was by far and away the market leader. These people want the boats stopped and if it's complex because of the ECHR, they expect us as legislators to work through that to come up with a solution.
“And Rishi promised to stop the boats but as Lee Anderson very bluntly pointed out a few weeks ago, well, he hasn't has he? So we've probably got one more chance and what we need in order to make this work is what's called a notwithstanding clause.”
Speaking to Andrew Pierce and Bev Turner, he continued: “What that means is you say, not withstanding the ECHR in this one scenario, in the cross-channel scenario, the ECHR will not apply.
“So you're not withdrawing from the whole ECHR, you're just saying in this particular set of circumstances, the Strasbourg’s court writ will not run.
“We’ve had two goes before. We had the Nationality and Borders Act. Many people wanted the notwithstanding clause, we didn't do it.
“We had the Illegal Immigration Act, many people wanted it in that, the [Home Secretary], she lost an argument with Rishi on that.”
He added: “Now it's three strikes and you're out”.
