Book review: Macdonald’s Immigration Law and Practice (11th edition)

The 11th edition of the essential Macdonald’s Immigration Law & Practice has been published. The first edition was published by the late, great, Ian Macdonald QC in 1983 and the most recent edition in June 2021. Updating this comprehensive handbook is a huge and important undertaking, the general editors for this edition are Stephanie Harrison KC, Ronan Toal, Sadat Sayeed and Claudia Neale. Many more barristers from Garden Court Chambers and Garden Court North Chambers also contributed to the update.

There was a seven year gap between the 9^th and 10^th edition, but a lot has obviously happened since then and it has been less than four years since the previous edition. In that time, the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 received Royal Assent, then we had the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and there have been 21 statements of changes to the immigration rules, to say nothing of the plethora of case law.

The preface to the book states that the law is as stated at 1 September 2024 but they have tried to include more recent developments where possible. The book even includes, impressively given it was published in March, analysis of the impact of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill.

The preface is also an excellent summary of developments since the previous edition, covering how the Nationality and Borders Act has rolled back protections for both refugees and victims of trafficking, the birth and death of the Rwanda plan, the Brook House inquiry, changes to the Adults at Risk statutory guidance and the duty to accommodate unaccompanied asylum seeking children. It concludes by saying that the Home Office requires “radical overhaul and wholesale change”, a position that few people reading this would disagree with.

The book itself covers far more areas than could ever be mentioned in the preface. It is so comprehensive, which is why every edition is essential for legal professionals working on any immigration and asylum matters. Chapters cover:

• the right of abode and citizenship
• control of entry and stay
• settlement and return
• common travel area, crew members and exempted groups
• EU free movement law, Brexit and related obligations
• human rights law
• visits and other temporary purposes
• students
• working, business and investment in the UK
• families, partners and children
• refugees, asylum, humanitarian protection and discretionary leave
• victims of trafficking
• welfare provision for asylum seekers, migrants and EEA citizens
• enforcement, penalties and sanctions
• deportation, removal and repatriation
• detention and bail
• rights of appeal and administrative review
• appeals to the First-tier Tribunal
• appeals to the Upper Tribunal, the Court of Appeal and applications for judicial review
• Special Immigration Appeals Commission

The level of detail is really impressive and the footnotes are full of interesting information and context. For example, one footnote to carriers’ liability legislation from 1987 explains that this was rushed through parliament after 58 Tamil people arrived on one flight from Sri Lanka.

As most people are probably aware, a lot of immigration law is in diffuse locations and can be quite difficult to track down. It is incredibly useful to be able to locate what you need quickly through the index and then check for updates online if needed. When you don’t know where to start looking for something, start here. If you don’t already have a copy, then you can pick one up here.