The Government has been refused permission to take its fight to remove hate preacher Abu Qatada from the UK to the highest court in the land, the Judicial Office has said.
Permission to appeal to the Supreme Court was refused by the Court of Appeal.
The Government’s latest move came after judges last month rejected the latest in a long line of attempts to deport the terror suspect to Jordan.
In March, the Court of Appeal backed an earlier ruling that Qatada, also known as Omar Othman, could not be deported over fears that evidence obtained through torture would be used against him.
A spokesman for the Judicial Office said the Court of Appeal had confirmed that that it had refused permission for the Home Secretary to appeal to the Supreme Court.
The Home Office has said it will now request permission to appeal against the decision to allow Abu Qatada to remain in the UK directly from the Supreme Court.
It is still open to the Government to apply directly to the Supreme Court in a bid to take the case further. The normal process is to submit a permission to appeal application which would then be considered by three Supreme Court justices.
They would decide whether or not the application raised a point of law of general public importance.
A Home Office spokesman said: “We are disappointed with the Court of Appeal’s decision but will now request permission to appeal directly from the Supreme Court.
“The Government remains committed to deporting this dangerous man and we continue to work with the Jordanians to address the outstanding legal issues preventing deportation.”