The High Court has halted the extradition of three French nationals because of the risk Parisian prisons may fail to meet human rights standards, in a decision that has shocked extradition lawyers.
Lord Justice Singh and Mrs Justice Carr held last week that there is a real risk French prison conditions may amount to ‘inhuman or degrading treatment’ of prisoners, in Shumba, Bechian and Henta v France [2018] EWHC 1762 (Admin). Consequently, extradition risked breaching Art 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (prohibition on torture). The court has now requested further information from the French prison authorities, including whether there is a problem with rats and bedbugs.
Singh LJ and Carr J said there will be a strong presumption of an Art 3 breach if any of the following are absent: a private sleeping space, at least 3m2 of floorspace per prisoner and the ability to move freely between furniture items in the cell.
George Hepburne Scott, barrister at Church Court Chambers, said: ‘The practical impact of this judgment cannot be overstated. It represents a sea-change in the British court’s approach to extraditions to France and may well complicate the post-Brexit EU-UK extradition negotiations.’
Hepburne Scott added: ‘Never before have the British courts found that there was such evidence of the systemic inhuman or degrading treatment of inmates in French prisons amounting to “inhuman or degrading treatment”.’
The case could cause further embarrassment for the UK and French authorities. Final judgment in the case is likely to come in October—just as the UK negotiates with the EU over its post-Brexit security and extradition arrangements.
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