The value of Akinyemi v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWCA Civ 236 (04 April 2017) is the consideration by the Court of Appeal of an appeal by a 33year old man who had been born in the UK; had long missed out on an opportunity of acquiring British citizenship and was now subject to deportation proceedings having accrued a lengthy criminal record in the UK. Could the fact that he been entitled to acquire British citizenship over the past years but failed to avail himself of the appropriate avenues, be sufficient to enable him to successfully resist deportation? Could his presence in the UK be regarded as unlawful or precarious? Could the fact that the Appellant had only ever lived in the UK all his life be sufficient to resist deportation? Is the absence of connections with the country of return, a trump card? What is the effect of serious and persistent offending?
