Foreign Office fights move to publish secret immigration blacklist The Home Office subsequently responded by securing authorisation to discriminate against nationalities considered "high-risk" by subjecting those applicants to more rigorous questioning and checks. Most countries on the list are thought to be in the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East. Susan Simon, the FCO's director of migration, reportedly told the tribunal: "Although many countries will be aware of the security concerns posed by their nationals, some would be highly offended if the UK raised these concerns publicly. Many countries use visa and immigration policy as a foreign policy tool, reflecting their attitudes towards certain countries and the value of certain relationships. They expect us to do the same. She said even those that understood Britain's risk-based approach would react badly if it was publicised that they were on the list. The FCO also argued that it could also risk overseas contracts for British companies and would "create or increase the perception that the UK is not open to visitors or business from those countries." Human rights lawyer, Shahram Taghavi, representing John O in today's appeal, told the Guardian that the secret list "not only offends against the established fundamental human rights principle of not discriminating on the grounds of nationality or race, but also violates a cardinal principle of the rule of law, the principle that laws must be accessible to citizens." He added: "We will be arguing that the Home Office have not provided a single piece of evidence to support their allegation that disclosure of the list will damage international relations and inviting the tribunal to rule that any risk of damage to international relations is wholly outweighed by the public interest."