Dr S Chelvan - a globally recognised legal expert and Head of Immigration and Public Law at 33 Bedford Row - was interviewed on the Times Radio Breakfast Show on 28th January 2025.
The segment discussed deportation and the role of the European Convention of Human Rights.
The main case of “GH” is discussed: Violent drug dealer dodged deportation because his daughter might be transgender
These two articles form the backdrop of the discussion:
Chelvan was interviewed by Stig Abell, alongside fellow panellist and Convservative MP, Sir Alec Edward Shelbrooke KBE.
Sir Alec noted in the discussion that the ECHR has an important role to play, but that the problem lies in it being supreme to our own courts (since the Human Rights Act 1998).
Chelvan explained that this government has made it clear that they are committed to the European Convention of Human Rights and we do not send individuals back to countries where they will be at risk of death (such as in the case of bisexual man from Jamaica).
Chelvan referred to the November 2023 Supreme Court Rwanda judgment (AAA (Syria)) making clear the prohibition against sending an individual to a country where they will face a real risk of torture does not only arise from Article 3 of the ECHR, but also the UK’s obligations under the (1984) UN Convention Against Torture, and the 1966 International Convention on Civil and Political Rights.
When assessing the family life rights in the case of GH the Tribunal focussed on the undue harshness deportation would have not on GH, but of his children, accepting the evidence of an Independent Social Worker who highlighted their need for their Jamaican parent to continue to live with them in the UK for their cultural heritage, and for one of his daughters who would only speak to him regarding her gender identity.
The news report regarding the two men who claimed to no longer hold Pakistani nationality, the 1954 Stateless Convention, and not the ECHR, is also a legal focus for those who claim to be stateless.
Chelvan made clear, all these cases are fact-sensitive.
You can listen to the full interview here courtesy of Times Radio.