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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) Decisions >> The Secretary of State for the Home Department v SS (Congo) & Ors [2015] EWCA Civ 387 (23 April 2015) URL: https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2015/387.html Cite as: [2015] WLR(D) 199, [2016] 1 All ER 706, [2015] INLR 683, [2015] EWCA Civ 387, [2015] Imm AR 1036 |
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C5/2014/3099, C5/2014/0703, C5/2014/3322, C5/2014/3324 |
ON APPEAL FROM THE UPPER TRIBUNAL
(IMMIGRATION AND ASYLUM CHAMBER)
FIRST TIER TRIBUNAL
Royal Courts of Justice Strand, London, WC2A 2LL |
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B e f o r e :
LORD JUSTICE UNDERHILL
and
LORD JUSTICE SALES
____________________
THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT |
Appellant |
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- and - |
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(1) SS (CONGO) (2) BM (AFGHANISTAN) (3) BB (PAKISTAN) (4) FA (SOMALIA) (5) AC (CANADA) (6) KG (INDIA) |
Respondents |
____________________
Richard Drabble QC, Tony Muman & Joseph Neville (instructed by J. M. Wilson Solicitors LLP) for the 1st & 2nd Respondents
James Dixon for the 3rd Respondent
FA (Somalia) the 4th Respondent did not appear
Richard Drabble QC, Tony Muman & Joseph Neville (instructed by Carlton Solicitors) for the 5th Respondent
James Collins (instructed by G Singh Solicitors) for the 6th Respondent
Hearing dates : 24 - 26 February 2015
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Crown Copyright ©
Lord Justice Richards:
Introduction
The basic legal framework
Consideration of the minimum income requirements in MM (Lebanon) at first instance and in the Court of Appeal
Different parts of the Immigration Rules: exceptional cases and compelling reasons
"19. In de Freitas v Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Lands and Housing [1999] 1 AC 69, 80, the Privy Council, drawing on South African, Canadian and Zimbabwean authority, defined the questions generally to be asked in deciding whether a measure is proportionate:
"whether: (i) the legislative objective is sufficiently important to justify limiting a fundamental right; (ii) the measures designed to meet the legislative objective are rationally connected to it; and (iii) the means used to impair the right or freedom are no more than is necessary to accomplish the objective."
This formulation has been widely cited and applied. But counsel for the applicants (with the support of Liberty, in a valuable written intervention) suggested that the formulation was deficient in omitting reference to an overriding requirement which featured in the judgment of Dickson CJ in R v Oakes [1986] 1 SCR 103, from which this approach to proportionality derives. This feature is (p 139) the need to balance the interests of society with those of individuals and groups. This is indeed an aspect which should never be overlooked or discounted. The House recognised as much in R (Razgar) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2004] 2 AC 368, paras 17–20, 26, 27, 60, 77, when, having suggested a series of questions which an adjudicator would have to ask and answer in deciding a Convention question, it said that the judgment on proportionality:
"must always involve the striking of a fair balance between the rights of the individual and the interests of the community which is inherent in the whole of the Convention. The severity and consequences of the interference will call for careful assessment at this stage" (see para 20).
If, as counsel suggest, insufficient attention has been paid to this requirement, the failure should be made good.
20. In an article 8 case where this question is reached, the ultimate question for the appellate immigration authority is whether the refusal of leave to enter or remain, in circumstances where the life of the family cannot reasonably be expected to be enjoyed elsewhere, taking full account of all considerations weighing in favour of the refusal, prejudices the family life of the applicant in a manner sufficiently serious to amount to a breach of the fundamental right protected by article 8. If the answer to this question is affirmative, the refusal is unlawful and the authority must so decide. It is not necessary that the appellate immigration authority, directing itself along the lines indicated in this opinion, need ask in addition whether the case meets a test of exceptionality. The suggestion that it should is based on an observation of Lord Bingham in Razgar, para 20. He was there expressing an expectation, shared with the Immigration Appeal Tribunal, that the number of claimants not covered by the rules and supplementary directions but entitled to succeed under article 8 would be a very small minority. That is still his expectation. But he was not purporting to lay down a legal test."
"… are a central part of the legislative and policy context in which the interests of immigration control are balanced against the interests and rights of people who have come to this country and wish to settle in it. Overall, the Secretary of State's policy as to when an interference with an Article 8 right will be regarded as disproportionate is more particularised in the new Rules than it had previously been."
Accordingly, a court or tribunal is required to give the new Rules "greater weight than as merely a starting point for the consideration of the proportionality of an interference with Article 8 rights" (para. [47]).
i) A person outside the United Kingdom may have a good claim under Article 8 to be allowed to enter the United Kingdom to join family members already here so as to continue or develop existing family life: see e.g. Gül v Switzerland (1996) 22 EHRR 93 and Sen v Netherlands (2001) 36 EHRR 7. Article 8 does not confer an automatic right of entry, however. Article 8 imposes no general obligation on a state to facilitate the choice made by a married couple to reside in it: R (Quila) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2011] UKSC 45; [2012] 1 AC 621, para. [42]; Abdulaziz, Cabales and Balkandali v United Kingdom (1985) 7 EHRR 471, [68]; Gül v Switzerland, [38]. The state is entitled to control immigration: Huang, para. [18].
ii) The approach to identifying positive obligations under Article 8(1) draws on Article 8(2) by analogy, but is not identical with analysis under Article 8(2): see, in the immigration context, Abdulaziz, Cabales and Balkandali v United Kingdom, paras. [67]-[68]; Gül v Switzerland, [38]; and Sen v Netherlands, [31]-[32]. See also the general guidance on the applicable principles given by the Grand Chamber of the ECtHR in Draon v France (2006) 42 EHRR 40 at paras. [105]-[108], summarising the effect of the leading authorities as follows (omitting footnotes):
"105. While the essential object of Art.8 is to protect the individual against arbitrary interference by the public authorities, it does not merely require the State to abstain from such interference: there may in addition be positive obligations inherent in effective "respect" for family life. The boundaries between the State's positive and negative obligations under this provision do not always lend themselves to precise definition; nonetheless, the applicable principles are similar. In both contexts regard must be had to the fair balance that has to be struck between the competing interests of the individual and the community as a whole, and in both contexts the State is recognised as enjoying a certain margin of appreciation. Furthermore, even in relation to the positive obligations flowing from the first paragraph, "in striking [the required] balance the aims mentioned in the second paragraph may be of a certain relevance".
106. "Respect" for family life … implies an obligation for the State to act in a manner calculated to allow ties between close relatives to develop normally. The Court has held that a state is under this type of obligation where it has found a direct and immediate link between the measures requested by an applicant, on the one hand, and his private and/or family life on the other.
107. However, since the concept of respect is not precisely defined, states enjoy a wide margin of appreciation in determining the steps to be taken to ensure compliance with the Convention with due regard to the needs and resources of the community and of individuals.
108. At the same time, the Court reiterates the fundamentally subsidiary role of the Convention. The national authorities have direct democratic legitimation and are, as the Court has held on many occasions, in principle better placed than an international court to evaluate local needs and conditions. In matters of general policy, on which opinions within a democratic society may reasonably differ widely, the role of the domestic policy-maker should be given special weight."
iii) In deciding whether to grant LTE to a family member outside the United Kingdom, the state authorities may have regard to a range of factors, including the pressure which admission of an applicant may place upon public resources, the desirability of promoting social integration and harmony and so forth. Refusal of LTE in cases where these interests may be undermined may be fair and proportionate to the legitimate interests identified in Article 8(2) of "the economic well-being of the country" and "the protection of the rights and freedoms of others" (taxpayers and members of society generally). A court will be slow to find an implied positive obligation which would involve imposing on the state significant additional expenditure, which will necessarily involve a diversion of resources from other activities of the state in the public interest, a matter which usually calls for consideration under democratic procedures.
iv) On the other hand, the fact that the interests of a child are in issue will be a countervailing factor which tends to reduce to some degree the width of the margin of appreciation which the state authorities would otherwise enjoy. Article 8 has to be interpreted and applied in the light of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989): see In re E (Children) (Abduction: Custody Appeal) [2011] UKSC 27; [2012] AC 144, at [26]. However, the fact that the interests of a child are in issue does not simply provide a trump card so that a child applicant for positive action to be taken by the state in the field of Article 8(1) must always have their application acceded to; see In re E (Children) at [12] and ZH (Tanzania) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2011] UKSC 4; [2011] 2 AC 166, at [25] (under Article 3(1) of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child the interests of the child are a primary consideration – i.e. an important matter – not the primary consideration). It is a factor relevant to the fair balance between the individual and the general community which goes some way towards tempering the otherwise wide margin of appreciation available to the state authorities in deciding what to do. The age of the child, the closeness of their relationship with the other family member in the United Kingdom and whether the family could live together elsewhere are likely to be important factors which should be borne in mind.
v) If family life can be carried on elsewhere, it is unlikely that "a direct and immediate link" will exist between the measures requested by an applicant and his family life (Draon, para. [106]; Botta v Italy (1998) 26 EHRR 241, para. [35]), such as to provide the basis for an implied obligation upon the state under Article 8(1) to grant LTE; see also Gül v Switzerland, [42].
'Complete code'
The evidence rules: Appendix FM-SE
'Near miss' cases
The individual cases before us
The four appeals
SS Congo
BM (Afghanistan)
BB (Pakistan)
FA (Somalia)
Conclusion on the appeals
The cases involving applications for extension of time for appealing
The legal principles
i) The first stage is to identify and assess the seriousness or significance of the failure to comply with the rules. The focus should be on whether the breach has been serious or significant. If a judge concludes that a breach is not serious or significant, then relief will usually be granted and it will usually be unnecessary to spend much time on the second or third stages; but if the judge decides that the breach is serious or significant, then the second and third stages assume greater importance.
ii) The second stage is to consider why the failure occurred, that is to say whether there is a good reason for it. It was stated in Mitchell (at para. [41]) that if there is a good reason for the default, the court will be likely to decide that relief should be granted. The important point made in Denton was that if there is a serious or significant breach and no good reason for the breach, this does not mean that the application for relief will automatically fail. It is necessary in every case to move to the third stage.
iii) The third stage is to evaluate all the circumstances of the case, so as to enable the court to deal justly with the application. The two factors specifically mentioned in CPR rule 3.9 are of particular importance and should be given particular weight. They are (a) the need for litigation to be conducted efficiently and at proportionate cost, and (b) the need to enforce compliance with rules, practice directions and court orders. As stated in para. [35] of the judgment in Denton:
"Thus, the court must, in considering all the circumstances of the case so as to enable it to deal with the application justly, give particular weight to these two important factors. In doing so, it will take account of the seriousness and significance of the breach (which has been assessed at the first stage) and any explanation (which has been considered at the second stage). The more serious or significant the breach the less likely it is that relief will be granted unless there is good reason for it …."
"If applications for extensions of time are allowed to develop into disputes about the merits of the substantive appeal, they will occupy a great deal of time and lead to the parties' incurring substantial costs. In most cases the merits of the appeal will have little to do with whether it is appropriate to grant an extension of time. Only in those cases where the court can see without much investigation that the grounds of appeal are either very strong or very weak will the merits have a significant part to play when it comes to balancing the various factors that have to be considered at stage three of the process. In most cases the court should decline to embark on an investigation of the merits and firmly discourage argument directed to them ….."
The facts
The application of the principles in these cases
"One reason for limiting the time for filing a notice of appeal is to promote finality in litigation. Parties need to know where they stand."