Deportation threat lifted for Bristol men who came to UK as children

Bristol deputy Mayor Asher Craig said she was frustrated that the legal process involving her nephew Romaine, right, had taken so long

Two men who grew up in the UK have successfully fought being deported to a country they have few connections with.

Anthonell Peccoo and Romaine Murchison met in prison, serving time for offences they say they bitterly regret.

By law any foreign national who serves more than a year should be deported, unless a specified exception applies.

An immigration tribunal said it would be "cruel and morally wrong" to remove Mr Peccoo, while Mr Murchison found out last week he would be able to stay.

Having left Jamaica for Bristol as children, neither has a British passport.

In the case of Mr Peccoo, the tribunal said it had taken into account the fact he has no relatives or acquaintances in Jamaica.

Anthonell Peccoo faced deportation to Jamaica despite having no family or friends there

"For the judge to judge in [my] favour, to just give me a little nod to say you're good - for this country - it was really exciting," said Mr Peccoo, who now works as a hairdresser in Bristol.

"I was glad that I was able to plead my case and say all the things that I've been holding on for dear life, that I wanted to say."

Romaine Murchison, a youth worker in Bristol, spent time in a deportation centre next to Heathrow Airport as part of a lengthy legal battle.

'Able to breathe'

He was told earlier this year he could stay, but the Home Office appealed. He finally heard last week that appeal had been rejected and he can stay in the UK.

"For the past five or six years I haven't been able to breathe properly, and now I feel like I can let out my first proper breath of air and just get on with my life," he said.

The Home Office said it does not routinely comment on individual cases.

In a statement it added: "This government puts the rights of the British public before dangerous criminals, and we're clear that foreign criminals should be deported wherever it is legal and practical to do so."

Mr Murchison said it felt like he could "breathe properly" now he has been told he can stay in Bristol

Romaine's aunt Asher Craig, Bristol's deputy mayor, said she had been frustrated by the government's approach.

"They [the Home Office] believe that if the person they are trying to deport has no family, no recourse to public funds, they can't work, they can't do anything - they are there to just grind you down to the ground," she said.

Mr Peccoo has been supported by Bristol charity Happytat which has also helped with a premises to base his hairdressing business in.

"It's been fantastic, we've been rooting for him, praying for him," said manager Andie Blake.

"We're all so happy for him, and it's brilliant because we get to keep him as well."