Sex offender told he won't be deported south

Edmund Doherty, who grew up in Londonderry, but now regards Swords in County Dublin as his home, was refused a judicial review into the Home Office’s refusal to kick him out of Northern Ireland, at the High Court last month.

According to the Court documents Doherty was convicted of a number of sexual offences against a minor in May 2012 and served three years of a six year sentence until his release last year.

But bizarrely, despite renouncing UK citizenship and asking to be deported, the Home Office has insisted he stay in the UK for the duration of his licence.

“Whilst in custody he began to raise issues as to whether or not he would be permitted to return to the Republic of Ireland after his release date to live with his partner,” the Court documents show.

“The applicant signed a declaration renouncing his British citizenship on June 18, 2013 and as of April 29, 2014 the Home Office formally recognised his renunciation and from that date onwards he is to be regarded solely as an Irish Citizen.

“On August 15, 2014 he asked his solicitor to explore repatriation to ROI for the duration of his custodial sentence but for various reasons this did not materialise.

“On October 21, 2014 the applicant’s solicitor wrote to the UK Visas and Immigration office to the effect that he maintained that as he was a foreign criminal convicted of an offence in the United Kingdom which had resulted in a sentence of a term of imprisonment in excess of one year he should be removed from the United Kingdom upon the conclusion of the custodial part of his sentence,” they reveal.

The Home Office refused Doherty’s application, whilst the High Court refused an application for a judicial review into Mrs May and her Department’s decision.