RB (Algeria) (FC) and another v Secretary of State for the Home Department;OO (Jordan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department

The House of Lords gave judgment yesterday, 18th February, in three joined cases where the Appellants were challenging deportation orders. Their Lordships held that appeals from decisions of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission were restricted to questions of law or irrationality. They further held that the Special Immigration Appeals Commission had been entitled to conclude, having regard to assurances given by the respective governments and to closed material, that the appellants would not, if deported, face a real risk of inhuman treatment contrary to article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights or of violation of the article 6 right to a fair trial.

Michael Beloff QC appeared for the Home Secretary;  Guy Goodwin-Gill appeared for Mr Othman; Lord Pannick QC and Tom Hickman appeared for Justice and Human Rights Watch, as intervenors in each case.