The UK delegation to the talks will be led by Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy.
He is expected to tell the meeting that the UK remains committed to the ECHR – but its interpretation must not stand in the way of combating people smuggling.
The UK’s already-announced domestic plan includes legislating to restrict how the right to private and family life applies in removal cases.
The BBC understands that if the meeting in Strasbourg is a success, officials will begin working with the member states on a political declaration to clarify how human rights laws should be applied to migration challenges – with a deadline of next May for the final wording.
The talks are expected to cover some of the most difficult issues including combating migrant smuggling and how to create human rights compliant ‘returns hubs’ – centres outside of Europe where migrants could be forcibly housed if they can not be returned to dangerous countries.
The talks are also expected to cover the complex rules of Article 8, the right to family life, and Article 3, the ban on inhumane treatment which features in many migration cases.
Speaking at the talks, Lammy is expected to say: “The definition of ‘family life’ can’t be stretched to prevent the removal of people with no right to remain in the country… the threshold of ‘inhuman and degrading treatment’ must be constrained to the most serious issues… and states must be able to take proportionate decisions on the removal of foreign criminals.”
He will say that the convention is “a critical foundation of peace, stability, and security in Europe” but will add that it was “never intended to be frozen in time”.
In October Alain Berset, the head of the Council of Europe, told the BBC that he was “absolutely ready” to discuss human rights reforms.
That olive branch to member states came after months of diplomatic talks paving the way for Wednesday’s meeting.
“The European Convention on Human Rights provides the framework we need to address these issues effectively and responsibly,” said Berset ahead of the meeting.
“Our task is not to weaken the Convention, but to keep it strong and relevant — to ensure that liberty and security, justice and responsibility, are held in balance.”
