News

A local father-of-two has lost his battle to stay in Britain.

Joao Muambo Ambriz, 35, arrived in the UK in 2003, from Angola and now lives in Dover with his British-born wife.

He won a reprieve against deportation in December, but now the Home Office has told him me must leave though he fears he will be tortured in Angola.

Dover MP Gwyn Prosser is backing Mr Ambriz but said Immigration Minister Liam Byrne wrote to him saying the case was not a genuine claim for asylum.

Mr Prosser, Labour MP for Dover, said the latest development meant the order to detain and remove Mr Ambriz could be reinstated.

He added: "Whatever transpires I am committed to supporting the case and doing all I can to keep this loving couple together with their children in their Dover home."

Mr Ambriz's wife Hannah said: "This is not the end of the game, we will push it as far as a judicial review if we have to.

"We have got lots of avenues to explore and we will not give up until we get the right answer."

Mr Ambriz came to the UK after fleeing his home country as a political dissident, but all his asylum applications since then have been rejected.

In December he won a last-minute reprieve against deportation and spent Christmas at home with his family after being released from a detention centre.

In a statement, the Home Office said: ""We only return those who the asylum decision making and independent appeals processes have found do not need international protection and who can therefore return safely.

"We examine with great care each individual case before removal and we will not remove anyone who we believe is at risk on their return."