The consultation document is shot through with complaints about the human rights of foreign criminals, notwithstanding the restrictions brought in by the Immigration Act 2014. The “discretion left to the courts” has been “used to dilute the intended impact” of that clampdown, the government complains. It adds that “A number of cases since 2014 help to demonstrate this”, but cites two.
The first is
AD (Turkey), which concerned a man with a conviction for grievous bodily harm. The case study does not mention that he had been married to a British citizen for 31 years and that the judge described it as a “rare and exceptional” case.
The second is
OO (Nigeria), which concerned a man with serious drug and assault convictions. The case study does not mention that OO was born in the UK and had been to Nigeria, the country of proposed deportation, since the age of nine. Even then, it seems to have been a finely balanced decision and the judgment concludes with a warning that any further offending would likely see him deported.