Jack Straw
Home Secretary · 1997–2001
In one sentence
Put the ECHR into British courtrooms, then ran the Home Office as the inflows began.
Straw was the Home Secretary who took the Human Rights Act through Parliament. That single statute is the legal engine behind a generation of last-minute injunctions, Article 8 family-life wins, and 'safe country' challenges — including the litigation that grounded Rwanda. He also passed the 1999 Immigration and Asylum Act. He has since said parts of the HRA were used in ways he did not intend. He has not supported repeal.
The Human Rights Act is a fundamental part of our constitutional arrangements.
What they did
9 Nov 1998
Human Rights Act Royal Assent
Straw's bill. In force from October 2000. Every Home Secretary since has had to litigate deportations through it.
1999
Immigration and Asylum Act
Built the NASS support and appeals machine. Claims and backlogs grew; removals did not keep up.
How they voted
Blocked it / opened it means they voted against tighter rules, or for the Human Rights Act. Backed it means they voted for a tightening bill.
| Bill | What they did | Note |
|---|---|---|
HRA 1998 1998 | Opened it | Bill minister. |
IAA 1999 1999 | Aye | Bill minister. |
Sources: Hansard, Human Rights Bill 1998; Immigration and Asylum Act 1999