Labour's bid to deport the first small boat migrant back to France stalled at the last minute.
One migrant who arrived across the Channel last month had been due to be sent back aboard a scheduled flight to Paris on Monday afternoon.
But the removal under the new 'one-in, one-out' deal agreed with president Emmanuel Macron's government in July was abandoned.
It is thought lawyers for the migrant submitted late legal challenges shortly before the removal was due to take place aboard an Air France service.
The French flag carrier has been the target of protest campaigns organised by Britain's Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) and French charity Auberge des Migrants, urging it not to take part in the operation.
