The application for judicial review of the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (“the Scheme”), brought by four Palestinian refugees from Syria, who fled the conflict to Lebanon, succeeds. The Court determined that the Secretary of State had failed to have due regard to the equality need listed in Equality Act 2010, s 149(1)(b) in determining to rely exclusively on UNHCR (which has no mandate over Palestinian refugees in Lebanon or other areas of UNRWA operation) to refer refugees for resettlement in the UK under the Scheme. In so determining, the Court confirmed that s 149(1)b) has extraterritorial affect. However, it determined that s 29(6) of the 2010 act did not have effect outside of the UK, and that, as a consequence, the Scheme did not unjustifiably discriminate indirectly against the claimants on grounds of race.The Court further held that the Scheme was not unlawful at common law.
Raza Husain QC and Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh were involved in this case.
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Turani & Ors v SSHD [2019] EWHC 1586 (Admin)https://www.matrixlaw.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Turani-v-SSHD-2019-EWHC-1586-Admin.pdf