7:00AM GMT 21 Dec 2011
The Justice Secretary said officials were working on a joint proposal with the Swiss that would “pave the way” on what claims would be allowed to go to Strasbourg.
It is part of his drive to reform the international court to ensure it only deals with major breaches of human rights and not “trivial” personal claims.
In a separate issue, Mr Clarke told MPs he had previously “never seen the need” for a British Bill of Rights but now had an “open mind”.
In 2006, he famously criticised David Cameron’s plan to tear up the Human Rights Act and replace it with a bill of rights as “xenophobic”.
The UK hopes to use its current chairmanship of the Council of Europe to push through reform of the Strasbourg court.
He said there is already agreement among the council’s 47 members that changes are needed and there are “high hopes” that action will come under the UK tenure.
In evidence to the Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights, Mr Clarke said UK and Swiss officials were discussing a filter mechanism for the court to reduce cases.
No firm proposals have been drawn up yet but one option would be to put a time limit on cases so long running ones drop off the list.
It would initially target the 150,000 cases in arrears but Mr Clarke signalled it would then lead to changes in what cases are admissible to the court.
He said the “filter mechanism that would reduce the arrears and get rid of inadmissible cases quicker and start paving the way for how admissibility should be judged in the future.”
He told MPs: “People have been talking about the need for reform for ten years and I hope during the chairmanship of the UK we will get it nearer to some finality.
“There is quite strong support. The principle of reform is accepted. I would like the London declaration to be more precise and actually have a programme that will lead to change.”
In September, Mr Clarke said the European court should concentrate on major issues such as freedom and torture and not minor compensation claims.
It was an international court and not somewhere for people to claim compensation because "something has been done to your dog", he said.
Last month he told The Daily Telegraph ministers were on the brink of securing historic reform.
The Justice Secretary also backed comments by the Lord Chief Justice that domestic courts do not have to be bound by the rulings of Strasbourg.
Mr Clarke said there was a very live debate going on, including whether UK courts have been too “slavish” to Europe.
He said parliament had said in Human Rights Act that courts here should “have regard” to the rulings.
He added: “The jurisprudence of the Supreme Court is good.
“The Supreme Court should feel itself free to analyse a judgment from Strasbourg and decide how far they should regard it as being a binding precedent or not.”
