A London High Court ruled that the Home Office unlawfully reduced safeguards for potential trafficking victims to facilitate a returns deal with France [1].

The ruling challenges the operational viability of the "one in, one out" asylum-returns agreement. By stripping protections to ensure the deal's survival, the government may have compromised the legal rights of vulnerable migrants entering the United Kingdom.

The legal challenge was brought by five asylum seekers [1]. Among the claimants are four individuals from Eritrea and one from Sudan [1]. The court determined that the policy change breached established legal protections for trafficking victims, rendering the reduction of those safeguards unlawful [1].

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood oversaw the policy changes intended to keep the returns scheme active [1]. While some reports suggest these cuts were part of a broader asylum system overhaul, the court focused on the specific breach of trafficking protections linked to the French agreement [1].

The "one in, one out" deal remains a point of contention. Conflicting reports indicate the agreement may end as early as October or simply within the coming months [2, 3].

The decision marks a significant setback for the Home Office's attempt to balance diplomatic returns agreements with domestic human rights obligations. The court's finding suggests that administrative goals—such as maintaining a bilateral deal with a neighbor—cannot override statutory protections for victims of human trafficking [1].

“The High Court ruled that the Home Office’s reduction of safeguards for potential trafficking victims... was unlawful.”

This ruling creates a legal conflict between the UK's diplomatic commitments to France and its statutory obligations to protect trafficking victims. By declaring the safeguards' removal unlawful, the court has effectively signaled that the 'one in, one out' mechanism cannot be sustained through the erosion of human rights protections, potentially forcing the Home Office to redesign the returns deal or risk further litigation.