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Court suspends fast-track asylum appeal system Court suspends fast-track asylum appeal system
(35 minutes later)
The court of appeal has suspended the government’s fast-track appeal system for processing asylum applications. The court of appeal has ordered the home secretary, Theresa May, to suspend a fast-track immigration appeals system under which thousands of rejected asylum seekers are locked up each year.
Three judges put it on hold until the court hears a challenge by the lord chancellor and the home secretary against a ruling that the system, which has been in use for a decade to speed up the processing of asylum claims, is “structurally unfair”. The system, under which rejected asylum seekers are detained and given only seven days to appeal, was ruled unlawful by the high court two weeks ago but gave the government time to appeal.
The high court decision this month was a groundbreaking victory for the charity Detention Action, set up in 1993 to support and campaign on behalf of individuals held in immigration detention. However the charity Detention Action has successfully challenged this decision in the appeal court, which on Friday ordered an immediate halt to the system.
Mr Justice Nicol, sitting in London, ruled that the system must be quashed but put a stay on his order taking effect to give time for an appeal. Detention Action challenged the stay, and on Friday the appeal judges allowed the appeal and lifted the stay after the government decided not to defend it. The high court had ruled that the system, which has been in use since 2000, was “structurally unfair” with lawyers for the asylum seekers expected to take instructions, prepare statements, translate documents, make bail applications, arrange expert witnesses and make representations to be taken out of the fast track – all within a strict timetable of seven working days.
The government has already undertaken not to deport any applicants who lose fast-track cases pending the appeal. The use of the “detained fast track”, as it is called by the Home Office, has been rapidly expanded in recent years. Latest published figures show that 4,286 asylum seekers were locked up in Yarl’s Wood, Colnbrook or Harmondsworth detention centres under the scheme in 2013. This figure represented a 73% increase over the number for 2012.
Detention Action said the ruling by the appeal court judges meant that the Home Office could no longer impose the tight fast-track deadlines on asylum seekers making appeals while in detention. “Asylum seekers can no longer be detained throughout the asylum process simply for claiming asylum,” their statement added.
Any asylum seekers from any country can be put into the detained fast-track if the Home Office consider that their case can be decided quickly. Many of those involved are from countries such as Afghanistan and Sri Lanka and the system is not restricted to those with “manifestly unfounded” asylum claims.
Jerome Phelps, director of Detention Action, said: “We are delighted that asylum seekers will no longer face a detained appeals process that is so unfair as to be unlawful. It is unfortunate that it has taken so many court rulings to finally suspend this deeply flawed process.
“People seeking protection from war and persecution deserve better from British justice. We hope that the government will take this opportunity to reflect and develop a different approach that is fair,” he added.
This is the third time the courts have found the fast-track system to be unlawful, but each time previously the Home Office has been allowed to continue to operate it. The suspension will now stay in force until an appeal by the lord chancellor and the home secretary is resolved.
The suspension comes as the home secretary considers the implementation of her manifesto commitment to extend a policy of “deport first, appeal later” to all immigration appeals and judicial reviews.
The high court ruling a fortnight ago in part hinged on whether the immigration and asylum tribunal, which hears the appeals, had any discretion over implementing the Home Office-imposed timetable for appeals when new rules were adopted last September and whether they were ultra vires, or without legal authority. Internal tribunal minutes showed that immigration judges expressed concerns that an inflexible timetable risked creating injustice.
Mr Justice Nichol, ruling that the system should be quashed, said the case histories presented in the case showed that the time limit of seven working days caused real, not just theoretical, difficulties.
The government has said that it regards the detained fast-track as an important part of the immigration system. Ministers say it contributes significantly to the speed and effectiveness with which asylum cases are processed – including the swift removal of those found not to be in need of protection – and saves the taxpayer money.