A migrant is scheduled for deportation back to France this Friday after failing in a High Court attempt to halt his removal under the Government’s ‘one in, one out’ policy.
The case came just hours after the Home Office succeeded in sending the first migrant back to France under the deal.
The Indian man was flown from London to Paris this morning.
As a result of the first deportation taking place, Britain will begin accepting other migrants from France as early as Saturday.
The Home Office has been allowing online submissions from migrants presently situated in France who wish to relocate here, provided they haven’t been ‘previously expelled from the United Kingdom’ and don’t represent a ‘national security or public order threat’.
The number of migrants who will be admitted to Britain will equal the total who have been removed by that stage.
Like those deported to France, they are likely to come here aboard a scheduled passenger flight.
This upcoming deportation follows the Home Office’s numerous unsuccessful efforts over three days, stemming from the accord established in July between Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: ‘This is an important first step to securing our borders.
‘It sends a message to people crossing in small boats: if you enter the UK illegally, we will seek to remove you.
An Air France Airbus jet pictured on the apron at London’s Heathrow airport yesterday
‘I will continue to challenge any last-minute, vexatious attempts to frustrate a removal in the courts.
‘The UK will steadfastly contribute to aiding those truly escaping persecution, albeit through secure, lawful, and organized pathways—not perilous crossings.’
However, her Conservative counterpart Chris Philp remarked: ‘Since Labour publicized their repatriation plan, there have been 9,909 illegal migrants traversing the Channel, and now we are meant to cheer for a single remittance?
‘No-one is fooled by tough talk from Labour.
‘They will never do the hard work needed to tackle the lawfare that blocks removals.
‘In reality, Labour is directed by human rights lawyers—Keir Starmer and Lord Hermer—consistently aligning with open border proponents rather than prioritizing security and regulation.’
The first high-profile legal challenge on Tuesday forced ministers to temporarily abandon attempts to remove the Eritrean man, who had been due to be aboard a 9am flight yesterday.
The case led Ms Mahmood to condemn small boat migrants who lodge last-minute legal challenges.
She said it ‘made a mockery of our laws’ when they tried to dodge deportation by claiming they were victims of ‘modern slavery’.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has condemned small boat migrants who lodge ‘vexatious’ last-minute legal challenges
Ms Mahmood’s criticism of last-minute legal challenges were the most robust acknowledgment yet made by a Labour minister of how they are deployed to frustrate deportation measures.
But since the new returns deal with France was announced the Government has been repeatedly warned it was vulnerable to human rights and modern slavery claims.
On July 10, the day the policy was launched, the Daily Mail questioned senior Home Office figures about the possibility of legal challenges – but officials refused to speculate on how they would be handled.
This week’s High Court ruling on the unnamed Eritrean migrant paved the way for copycat claims by others at risk of deportation under the scheme.
About half of the 92 migrants reported to be in Home Office custody are expected to bring claims, legal sources said, by deploying similar human rights and ‘modern slavery’ grounds.
The day after his arrival in Britain on August 12 the Eritrean migrant said he had not been exploited on his way here.
But soon after he submitted a modern slavery claim alleging he had been forced to work unpaid in Libya while on his way to Europe.
The High Court granted an injunction barring his removal for 14 days while the modern slavery application is scrutinised.
A second hearing today also involved an Eritrean man who arrived in Britain on August 6.
His lawyers also claimed his removal should not go ahead because he was a victim of modern slavery and due to a series of potential human rights breaches.
But Mr Justice Sheldon rejected the application for an interim injunction which would have barred the deportation.
The man, who can only be identified by the initials SKG, is now due to be removed from the country early tomorrow.
Separately, the Home Office is due to appeal against Tuesday’s ruling in a bid to have the length of the injunction reduced so the first Eritrean man can be deported.
The Home Secretary has also launched an urgent review of the Modern Slavery Act to assess where it is currently open to misuse.
The Prime Minister – who scrapped the Tories’ Rwanda asylum deal as one of his first acts in office – has previously insisted Britain will never leave the European Convention on Human Rights, which many migrants deploy in their legal claims.
Before he entered politics, barrister Sir Keir edited a legal manual on how to interpret the new human rights laws shortly after they came into force, describing how they had ‘enormous potential’ and represented a ‘new way of thinking’ about the law.
Since the ‘one in, one out’ deal came into force on August 6, more than 5,400 small boat migrants have reached Britain.
The delays – and the prospect of more challenges ending up in court – have placed huge pressure on the Government as it struggles to tackle the Channel crisis.
So far this year 31,026 migrants have arrived, up 38 per cent on the same period last year.
Former home secretary Yvette Cooper was moved sideways to the Foreign Office in this month’s reshuffle after she failed to make progress.
