Member

Turning to Amendment 136, I have a stronger disagreement with it than simply that it is not covered by legislation currently. Amendment 136 would replace the Article 8 family life exception for deportation of foreign criminals who have a qualifying child with the lowest test that applies to other cases. Where an Article 8 claim is made by a foreign national offender sentenced to less than four years’ imprisonment, the claim will succeed if they show that the effect of deportation on a qualifying child would be unduly harsh. This is a higher threshold than applies to other Article 8 claims where there is no criminality, recognising the strong public interest in deporting foreign criminals.