Can neurotechnologies be used responsibly in the rehabilitation of convicted persons, respecting fundamental freedoms and rights? This is the question we have endeavoured to answer throughout this book. The human rights challenges generated by new and emerging neurotechnologies have been widely noted by scholars, ethics committees and human rights bodies. This has prompted a debate on how and to what extent human rights protect – and should protect – against unsolicited interference with our brains and minds. In a recent report on the impact, opportunities and challenges of neurotechnology in relation to human rights, the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee concluded that neurotechnologies can affect human rights in a “unique manner”. Therefore, developing an actionable human rights approach is of the “utmost importance”. Some of their concerns relate to the potential use of neurotechnology in the criminal justice system, holding that “most of the applications proposed are extremely problematic from a human rights perspective”. For example, they consider that “forceful extraction of information from detainees or offenders through the use of neurotechnology is prohibited”.

This first part of this chapter examines what is meant by the term ‘human rights’ and the role of this concept in twenty-first century public law. The concept of human rights is intended to protect those civil, political, social and economic interests vital to maintaining human autonomy. Human rights law, in its modern guise, came to the forefront of public thought across Europe in the aftermath of the Second World War, an era which produced the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The institutions established by the ECHR and the rights enumerated therein continue to evolve, providing the basis for some of the UK’s commitments in international law. The ECHR regime is designed to provide a framework not only for protecting human rights but, where necessary, for balancing competing rights against each other and against other important societal interests. The concept of human rights therefore provides a basis both for enumerating the most fundamental interests enjoyed by individuals within the UK and for restraining the actions of public authorities which conflict with those interests.