Half of deportations revoked by AAT

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal used the controversial Ministerial Direction 99 to overturn half of the government’s initial deportation orders for non-citizens on character ground since July last year.

The statistic was revealed in a senate estimates hearing held on Friday afternoon by the AAT’s registrar Michael Hawkins as the government faces a backlash over the application of the direction which was issued by Immigration Minister Andrew Giles in January 2023.

The directive has been tied to several cases where non-citizen criminals had their visa cancellations revoked, rather than be deported.

Of the 367 cases to which the AAT applied Direction 99 in this financial year, the body “set aside” 184 cases, rejecting the government’s initial decision. Approximately 100 further cases applying the direction are expected before June 30.

In the previous financial year, 459 cases were heard applying Direction 99, of which 212 were set aside.

Asked by Coalition Senator Paul Scarr about the morale of AAT members following “attacks” by the prime minister and immigration minister, Mr Hawkins said some would be “hurting” from the decisions they had made.

“From my own experience, I can say that you own the decision because you had uppermost in your mind whether you were denying someone the opportunity to come into Australia who should genuinely be here, but their case wasn’t sufficient,” Mr Hawkins told senate estimates.

“You would be concerned that that person could be gunned down on their return to their own country.

“Alternatively, if you allowed someone to have, for example, their visa cancelled, there might be an unfortunate circumstances around that person.

“We do worry about it. And the members who have been referred to in the press about decisions they’ve made, which have been made in accordance with their oath, and with the practice and procedure of a member, they would be wearing it and they would be hurting.”

The Tribunal, an independent body, reviews a wide range of administrative decisions made by the federal government under Commonwealth law, including on migration matters.

Among those who have had their visa cancellations overturned by the AAT are a New Zealand man who was convicted of raping his stepdaughter, a British man who attacked women on 26 occasions, and a Sudanese man who allegedly committed murder.

In response, Mr Giles accused the AAT of failing to apply a “commonsense approach” in its interpretation of the direction, and claimed the body had not granted adequate attention to community safety.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has consequently announced a new ministerial direction to ensure community safety overrides any other factor when a visa cancellation is reviewed by the AAT.