A Home Office policy to deport rough sleepers from countries in the European Economic Area (EEA) has been ruled unlawful by the high court after a challenge brought on behalf of two Polish men and a Latvian.

Since 2016 the Home Office has designated rough sleeping as an abuse of EU free movement rights in its administrative removal policy.

The court ruled that the Home Office’s position was contrary to EU law. It also found the policy was discriminatory and amounted to an unlawful systematic verification of the EEA nationals’ rights to reside.

Hundreds of EEA nationals detained under the policy may now be entitled for compensation for unlawful detention.

Three EEA nationals – Gunars Gureckis from Latvia, and Mariusz Perliński and Mariusz Cielecki from Poland – faced removal action because they were sleeping rough.

The legal challenge was brought by the Public Interest Law Unit (Pilu) and North East London Migrant Action (Nelma). The Aire Centre, a charity which promotes European law rights, provided evidence.

The Home Office may now face claims for unlawful detention where it has detained individuals on the basis of its policy. Those who have been removed from the UK and face a 12-month re-entry ban may also be entitled to have that ban lifted and be readmitted to the UK.

The Home Office launched Operations Adoze and Gopik to remove rough sleepers from the UK even if they were working or had permanent right of residence.



The evidence showed that the initial questioning and verification was part of a blanket policy, which only occurred because, under the terms of the policy, EEA nationals rough sleeping were presumed to be abusing their rights of residence.



This was also why this group was specifically targeted by immigration enforcement teams who were often assisted by the police and local authorities.

A Nelma spokesman said: “In reality, many homeless people targeted by the Home Office have fallen on hard times and are working but unable to afford accommodation.



“The numbers of European nationals sleeping rough have been steadily increasing since 2010. But rather than making substantial or systematic attempts to provide solutions to homelessness through accommodation and employment support, local and national authorities have opted to add enforcement measures to austerity policies. We hope this decision will put an end to a social policy which used imprisonment and deportation as solutions to eradicate homelessness.”



Zubier Yazdani of Deighton Pierce Glynn solicitors, who represented the Aire centre, said: “The court has upheld the well-established definition of an abuse of rights under EU law and sent a strong message to the Home Office that its removal of rough-sleeping EU citizens is totally unlawful and discriminatory. This decision comes as a significant defeat for the Home Office in their desire to create a ‘hostile environment’ for foreign nationals.”

Matthew Evans, the Aire Centre director, said: “The court has made clear that rough sleeping cannot amount to an abuse or ‘misuse’ of free movement rights under EU or UK law … the ruling also serves as a reminder that the Home Office remains subject to the rule of laws.”

The Public Interest Law Unit welcomed the judgment: “We are delighted that the court has been willing to protect the rights of a vulnerable group of workers who have been stigmatised both by the authorities and by sections of the media.



“Experience shows that if we stand by and allow a marginalised group to be victimised others can expect the same treatment later. Homelessness cannot humanely be dealt with by detaining or forcibly removing homeless people. This practice has been found unlawful and must immediately cease.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are disappointed by today’s judgment. However, we respect the court’s findings and will not be appealing. We will consider carefully what steps are necessary to ensure we reflect the judgment in future enforcement.”

A revised government policy, which has not yet received ministerial approval, was published shortly before the hearing, on 30 October 2017. Mrs Justice Lang declined to give guidance on the lawfulness of this revised policy but suggested the secretary of state should “take stock and reconsider the terms of the proposed revised policy, in the light of advice from her legal advisers”.

The European commission has said EU member states have no right to deport EU citizens for being homeless and said EU citizens had a right to live in other EU countries “irrespective of whether they are homeless or not”.