AB (Jamaica) v SSHD
Citation
[2008] HRLR 17; [2008] 1 WLR 1893; [2008] Imm AR 306 : [2008] INLR 83 : [2008] 1 WLR 1893 : Times, January 4, 2008
In substance, albeit not in form, a British spouse is a party to proceedings. It is as much their marriage as an appellant’s which is in jeopardy, and it is the impact of removal on them rather than on the foreign national which, given any lapse of years since the marriage, is critical. From Strasbourg’s point of view, both sets of Convention rights were as fully engaged as the other. It cannot be permissible to give less than detailed and anxious consideration to the situation of a British citizen who has lived here all his life before it is held reasonable and proportionate to expect him to emigrate to a foreign country in order to keep his marriage intact.