BLB18 v Minister for Home Affairs

The applicant, BLB18, sought judicial review of a decision by the Minister for Home Affairs to refuse to grant a protection visa. The applicant, who claimed to be a national of Afghanistan, alleged that they had been persecuted in their home country due to their ethnicity and gender. The Minister's decision was made under s 48B of the *Migration Act 1958* (Cth), which allows the Minister to substitute a more favourable decision for a protection visa if certain criteria are met. The matter came before Egan J in the Federal Court of Australia.

The central legal issue before the Court was whether the Minister's delegate had properly considered and applied the criteria set out in s 48B of the *Migration Act*. Specifically, the Court was asked to determine if the delegate had adequately assessed the applicant's claims of persecution and whether the delegate had erred in law by failing to give sufficient weight to certain evidence presented by the applicant. The applicant also contended that the delegate had failed to provide adequate reasons for the decision.

Egan J found that the delegate had failed to properly consider the applicant's claims of persecution, particularly in relation to the specific vulnerabilities arising from their ethnicity and gender. The Court held that the delegate's reasons were inadequate as they did not sufficiently explain how the evidence presented by the applicant was weighed against the Minister's assessment. The legal principle applied was that a delegate exercising a non-compellable, non-discretionary power under s 48B must provide reasons that demonstrate a proper consideration of all relevant factors and evidence.

The Court ordered that the decision of the Minister's delegate be set aside and remitted to the Minister for reconsideration according to law.