Background
The
issue in this case was whether the removal of a foreign national from
the UK would breach their rights under Article 3 not to be subject to
inhumane or degrading treatment where they are in receipt of medical
treatment in the UK which is not available in their home country.
In 1997 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) determined in D v UK (Application no. 30240/96)
that, as the applicant was in the advanced stages of AIDS to the extent
that he was reliant upon palliative care in the UK and would receive no
comfort or moral support in his home country, his removal would
constitute a breach of Article 3. This was noted to be a ‘very exceptional’ case.
The current leading domestic authority is N v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2005] UKHL 31. N
was also diagnosed with AIDS but owing to the availability of treatment
in the UK she was expected to live for decades; however, if returned to
Uganda, where such treatment was not available, she would die within
one to two years. Lord Hope set out the test for ‘very exceptional’ as
follows:
For
the circumstances to be [...] ‘very exceptional’ it would need to be
shown that the applicant’s medical condition had reached such a critical
stage that there were compelling
humanitarian grounds for not removing him to a place which lacked the
medical and social services which he would need to prevent acute
suffering while he is dying ...” [my emphasis]
Therefore, although N would die much faster in Uganda, as she would not be subject to ‘ acute suffering’
whilst dying there was no breach of Article 3. This was held to be the
case even though it was accepted that N’s life would be significantly
shortened [see Lord Nicholls at para 15]. The issue was declared to be
not whether her death would follow removal but whether “ there is care available [...] to enable [her] to meet that fate with dignity” [Baroness
Hale, para. 69]. In N’s case it was considered that such care was
available. The Grand Chamber of the ECtHR approved this reasoning in N v UK (Application no. 26565/05).
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