No case had the same impact in the UK last year as the Supreme Court’s decision on the Rwandan asylum plan. Raza Husain KC, who led much of the advocacy against the government, has been at the heart of the proceedings ever since the government’s attempts to remove the first asylum seekers were thwarted on the runway in June 2022.
After the interim application to stop the removals went from the Divisional Court to the European Court of Human Rights in three working days in 2022, last year was another hectic 12 months for those on the case, with the main matter heard by the Court of Appeal in April before the Supreme Court’s final decision in November. With all the political noise surrounding the case, Husain says it is easy to forget that this case was also about specific vulnerable individuals, bewildered at the idea of being put on a plane to Rwanda.
Although last year was dominated by the Rwanda case, Husain has also been acting on efforts to change the law for child refugees who want to bring their nuclear family to the UK.
After attending state school, Husain was the first person in his family to go to university. His interest in human rights preceded law, and after a stint at Amnesty International he moved to the Bar, where he later became one of the first members of Matrix Chambers.
There’s no rest for the wicked, however. With the government proposing a raft of new immigration laws, senior immigration and public law barristers like Husain may have their work cut out next year too.