A high court judge has blocked the removal of an Eritrean trafficking survivor to France under the UK’s “one in, one out” scheme. The judge warns that the policy could inflict further harm on those it claims to protect.

The ruling sharpens scrutiny of a controversial deal designed to deter Channel crossings by forcibly returning people who arrive in the UK in exchange for others transferred through legal routes. Critics say the policy is not only ineffective—it actively endangers survivors of modern slavery.

A trafficking survivor at risk

Authorities recognised the 31-year-old man as a trafficking victim after militia detained and exploited him in Libya. He arrived in the UK by small boat in August and remains in detention with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mr Justice Sheldon halted his removal, citing serious risks if authorities return him to France. As reported by The Guardian,

There may be difficulties for “one in, one out” returners accessing accommodation in France and that they were likely to face barriers accessing their entitlement to healthcare in the French system.

The judge also found that French authorities would likely fail to recognise him as a trafficking victim, “as the trafficking did not take place in France.”

The justice concluded there is a “real doubt” the man could access timely mental health care and warned he is “likely to suffer harm to his mental health if he is removed forcibly to France.”

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