BBC
Sham wedding powers ruled illegal
Law Lords have ruled the home secretary cannot use controversial powers
to stop sham marriages as they discriminate against foreigners in the
UK.
They said the Home Office had interfered in an "arbitrary and unjust"
way in the rights of 15,000 people.
Ministers said the rules were vital to tackle illegal immigration scams
- but conceded they will need to be reformed.
The measures were brought in after registrars complained they they had
no way of stopping bogus marriage rackets.
But many foreign nationals said they were being treated unfairly because
they had to pay up to £600 in fees for permission to marry.
Deny permission
In February 2005, the Home Office introduced rules meaning people who
were not legally permanently settled in the UK were obliged to seek
special permission to marry, irrespective of the status of their
partner.
But in April 2006 three couples alleged their human rights had been
breached.
In the first case the home secretary refused permission to marry to
Mahmoud Baiai, 37, an Algerian illegal immigrant, and Izabella
Trzcinska, 28, from Poland, who was in the UK legally.
Denying those benefits to a couple whose relationship is genuine
is neither a rational nor a proportionate response
Baroness Hale
The two other cases related to asylum seekers, including one individual
who had been told to leave the country but wanted to marry someone
already given protection as a refugee.
Both the asylum-related couples were later given permission to marry -
but Mr Baiai and Ms Trzcinska were not.
In his ruling, Lord Bingham said immigration rules as well as the right
to respect for family life under the European Convention gave protection
to some migrants who marry in the UK - even if they had limited or no
leave to enter or stay.
He added that the Immigration Directorate had issued instructions,
without clear parliamentary approval, to deny permission to marry under
certain circumstances.
"The vice of the scheme is that none of these conditions, although of
course relevant to immigration status, has any relevance to the
genuineness of a proposed marriage," he said.
Baroness Hale said that marriage still had "deep significance" within
British society as well as legal recognition and rights.
"Denying those benefits to a couple whose relationship is genuine is
neither a rational nor a proportionate response to the legitimate aims
of a firm and fair immigration policy."
Suspicious reports
The scale of sham marriages is unknown, although senior registrars
suggested that before the new legislation there could have been at least
10,000 a year.
Registrars at Brent Council in north London suggested in 2005 that a
fifth of all marriages there were bogus, with officials able to spot
couples who barely knew each other.
One 2005 case saw 25 people jailed for a sham marriage network
stretching from London to Leicester.
According to Home Office figures, since the new checks were introduced
the number of suspicious marriage reports received from registrars fell
from 3,740 in 2004 to fewer than 300 by the end of May 2005.
Between January and August 2006, there were only 149 such reports, it
said.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk/7533566.stm
Published: 2008/07/30 15:24:25 GMT
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