before he reached his decision.
However, I am quite
satisfied that the failure to make such arrangements did
not prejudice Mr. Osman in any way.
There was little which
Mr. Osman could or did personally add to the
Representations which had been delivered on his behalf
other than to stress the personal impact upon him of his
situation.
However, what has happened to Mr. Osman speaks
for itself and even without his personal plea must have
been obvious to the Home Secretary. I see no reason for
not accepting what the Home Secretary says that the letter
would not alter his decision. While it is right that it is
a bold thing to say that any case is open and shut, when
the Home Secretary had read the material which was
available to him, he was in a position where he could
reasonably take the view that this was not a case where a
personal plea would succeed when the formal Representations
were unsuccessful and therefore it was reasonable not to
defer the decision until after the covering letter had been
received.
In the result Mr. Osman was not unfairly
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