§ Earl Russellasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have taken legal advice on the practice of deporting people who have children born in this country and are therefore British subjects and ineligible for deportation and its compatibility with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. [HL713]
§ Lord FilkinA person born in the United Kingdom will not necessarily be a British Citizen. The law on citizenship changed on 1 January 1983 when the British Nationality Act 1981 came into force. Since that date, a child born in the United Kingdom will only be a British citizen automatically, if he is born to a parent who is either settled in the UK or a British Citizen.
When deciding whether or not to take deportation action, staff in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate are required to act in accordance with the Human Rights Act 1998. Where a person alleges that a decision taken under the Immigration Acts which relates to his right to remain in the United Kingdom infringes his human rights, he has a right of appeal to an adjudicator before removal unless he has already had a one-stop appeal at which the point could have been raised.
Where the person has a British citizen child, that is a factor which will be taken into account in deciding whether or not to remove him or her, but the European Court has made it clear that Article 8 does not automatically over-ride the immigration laws of individual signatory states. Removal in those circumstances would therefore not necessarily be incompatible with that article.
§ Earl Russellasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether an order of deportation confers authority on those who execute it to deny deportees access to their possessions; and whose property such possessions are after deportation. [HL714]
192WA
§ Lord FilkinA person who is subject to deportation action is liable to detention in accordance with paragraph 2 of Schedule 3 to the Immigration Act 1971. A deportation order does not directly affect access to possessions, but clearly a person who is not at liberty will not necessarily have free access.
Deportation does not affect legal title, and any possessions remain the property of the deportee after his or her removal.
The individual concerned will be aware that they are liable to removal from the United Kingdom, and the onus is on them to make such arrangements in respect of their possessions as they see fit.