Why is the UN set to consider claims the British government is ‘threatening the rule of law’?

Current plans to scrap the Human Rights Act and criminalise refugees are coming under international scrutiny, Lizzie Dearden writes

‘Whether the UN will take up the recommendations remains to be seen, but their existence should set off alarm bells’ (Getty Images)

This November, the United Nations will formally consider accusations that the British government is “threatening the rule of law”.

The sentence may sound dystopian but formal submissions by the Law Society give their reasoning - citing a raft of new laws that could undermine human rights, criminalise refugees and let unlawful conduct by the state go unpunished.

The body, representing more than 200,000 lawyers in England and Wales, is a formal stakeholder for the UN Human Rights Council.