The indifferent gesture: Article 7 TEU, the Fundamental Rights Agency and the UK’s invasion of Iraq

Abstract:

Articles 6 and 7 TEU have been identified for some time as the constitutional basis for the creation of a coherent human rights policy within the European Union. Article 7 specifically, as a means of enforcement against Member States, demonstrates a commitment to ensure, in particular, that human rights are respected. A significant consequence of this provision has been the recognition that continual scrutiny of the human rights record of Member States is necessary. Two events have seriously udermined this emerging policy framework. The invasion of Iraq and the alleged serial abuse of Art.6(1) principles by the United Kingdom and the determination that a Fundamental Rights Agency will not include within its remit scrutiny of Member States for Art.7 purposes have together suggested that Art.7 may be an 'empty gesture' and that the construction of a credible human rights policy remains out of reach. This article explores these issues, examining the general institutional approach to Arts 6(1) and 7, the particular related concerns indentifiable from the Iraq war and the EU response, and the development of the Fundamental Rights Agency in this context. It concludes with an overview of the enduring character of the EU's attitude to human rights internally.