Tag: refugees

The Nationality and Borders Bill: A devastating day for refugee protection, says Refugee Council

The publication of the Nationality and Borders Bill this week has marked the latest stage in the ongoing attack on refugee rights in the UK. Now it must galvanise everyone in this country who wants a fair and effective asylum system to oppose these changes.

The Government has claimed that two of its key objectives are to break up smuggling gangs, while also increasing ‘safe and legal routes’ for refugees to reach the UK. Unfortunately, nothing announced this week will do either of these things.

Instead, the provisions in this anti-refugee bill are likely to criminalise and punish many people seeking protection in this country, while also reducing one of the main ways that refugees can legally reach the UK.

Differential treatment of refugees

Refugees who do not arrive in the UK directly from a country of persecution (for example, those who travel across Europe) will not enter the asylum system when they make a claim for protection.

Instead their claim will be treated as inadmissible while the Government tries to remove them from the country. They will also be under threat of a four-year prison sentence for ‘entering illegally’. If removal isn’t possible within a particular period of time, then their asylum claim will be heard.

However, even when these refugees are granted asylum, and therefore recognised as in need of protection after fleeing war, persecution, and tyranny,  it will be under the guise of ‘temporary protection’. This means they will be given a lesser period of leave to live in the UK, which will need to be regularly renewed. They will be at risk of being removed from the country each time their leave is renewed.

This new approach flies in the face of the Refugee Convention, which states that the status of an asylum claim should not be dependent on the mode of entry into a country. It will create a group of vulnerable, precarious people, unable to plan for their futures in the UK or start to integrate. They will also have limited family reunion rights so will be kept apart from their children and spouses.

This cruel approach will not stop people arriving in the UK. It will, however, cost more as people will be waiting in limbo for months before their claim is heard, or as they cruelly move through the court and prison system.

Accommodation centres

The Government is proposing that some people seeking asylum will be housed in large-scale accommodation centres, rather than in housing in the community as is provided by the current system.

The recent use of a disused military barracks to house people seeking asylum has already shown why this kind of accommodation should not be an option. The Government recognises that vulnerable people should not live in hostel-type accommodation, yet the process for identifying vulnerabilities is flawed and vulnerable people still end up there.

Furthermore, we know that legal representatives have reported difficulties in being able to properly brief their clients and discuss their asylum claims in a shared space with people around at all times.

Finally, and most importantly, how we house those who seek protection in our country speaks volumes about our overall approach to refugees. Welcoming people to live in our communities while they make their asylum claim will aid their integration in the long run, and shows that we are proud to support those who have fled war and persecution. Housing them in reception centres does the opposite.

A lack of safe and legal routes

Government rhetoric throughout the production of its New Plan for Immigration has been that refugees should use legal routes to enter the UK, and that the Government supports the expansion of these routes. Unfortunately, nothing in this bill makes good on that commitment.

In recent years, 5,000 refugees have been resettled to the UK each year – but for 2021-22 the total is likely to be closer to 3,000. The Government is now refusing to commit to a target for future years and nothing in the bill gives any detail on refugee resettlement.

Additionally, over many years, tens of thousands of people have been reunited with their loved ones through refugee family reunion rules. Yet this key route is now being stymied, as the bill proposes that anyone with ‘temporary protection’ will have limited rights to refugee family reunion. This actually reduces the safe and legal routes to the UK, and means that many thousands of women and children will no longer be able to join loved ones in our country.

Next steps and how we fight back

The publication of the bill marks the start of its journey through Parliament, and MPs will debate the proposoals in the near future. This is the first opportunity to show the strength of opposition to these changes, and you can call on your MP to stand up for refugees here.

However, the campaign for a fair asylum system, with refugee protection at its heart, does not begin or end in Parliament. We want to build a mass campaign of people that won’t stand by while the Government turns its back on those who need protection. Please keep an eye out for more on this in the coming months from us.

UK Government matches another £5 million of donations for DEC coronavirus appeal

Funds raised by the DEC appeal will support the work of the 14 leading UK charities, who are helping to stop the spread of the virus and saving lives in refugee camps.

The UK Government is doubling its support to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Coronavirus Appeal, following a huge response from the British public, International Development Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan announced yesterday.

This increase of match funding up to £10 million follows donations of £9.8 million in 9 days – a donation of £25, when matched by the UK Government, could provide two families with essential hygiene kits.

The DEC Coronavirus Appeal is helping to provide lifesaving aid to refugees, who are living in overcrowded camps where social distancing is impossible and therefore face a higher risk of catching coronavirus.

Funds raised by the appeal will support the work of the 14 leading UK charities, making up the DEC, who are helping to stop the spread of the virus and saving lives in refugee camps by:

  • providing frontline doctors and aid workers with equipment and supplies to care for the vulnerable and sick;
  • making sure families have enough food to prevent malnutrition, particularly amongst children; and
  • giving families clean water and soap, as well as information about the dangers of the disease.

International Development Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said: “The British people have been incredibly generous and compassionate in donating to this life-saving appeal. To double the impact of their kindness the UK Government will match a further £5 million of donations pound-for-pound.

“Together our support is protecting millions of people in the developing world from coronavirus, including those escaping conflict. This will in turn help stop future waves of the disease.”

The announcement takes the total amount of UK aid pledged to end the pandemic globally to £774 million.

This week’s announcement by WFP warns that Covid-19 is contributing to a ‘perfect storm’ of problems that could throw millions of Yemenis into a deeper food crisis. 

Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Chief Executive Saleh Saeed says the situation is so acute in Yemen that much more needs to be done now, before hunger levels rise again in the coming months, as forecast in the report.

The DEC Coronavirus Appeal launched last week to help people displaced by conflict and instability in some of the most fragile places in the world – including Yemen – who are now facing the Covid-19 pandemic.

DEC members are already responding in the country and say that many families have lost almost all means of accessing food. In a country that imported 90% of its food even before the war, the ongoing financial crisis and restrictions on imports by warring parties have resulted in massive increases in the price of food.

Muhsin Siddiquey, Oxfam’s Yemen Country Director said: “This new data shows how bleak the situation is for the millions of Yemenis struggling with hunger as conflict has decimated infrastructure, restricted food imports, and led to mass unemployment.

“For millions the Covid-19 pandemic is the final blow, causing a slump in vital remittances and squeezing food imports even tighter.

“I worry that Yemenis are having to choose between dying at home from hunger or risking getting the virus by going out to find food. We really need donations to keep supporting and saving the lives of the most vulnerable people.”

Alex Nawa, Yemen Country Director, Action Against Hunger said: “In Yemen the cost of food has doubled in the last two weeks. In some rural areas it has gone up three times. We think severe malnutrition will increase by 10% in the next few months.

“Food prices have increased because of inflation and because fuel prices have shot up so the cost of transporting food to shops and markets has risen. Fuel shortages have hampered delivery of clean water and caused problems with water pumping.

“There is a lack of knowledge about the virus. When people die they are buried within 12-24 hours. I have seen the number of burials at cemeteries increase over the last few weeks. There is no testing to see if people have died of Covid.

“Families are responsible for burial and don’t wear any PPE, often burying their loved ones with their bare hands. I am very worried that they could then get infected with the virus. It’s a grim outlook here – Covid is having a massive impact.”

Saleh Saeed, DEC Chief Executive, said: “I could never have imagined this happening to my ancestral home country … my friends and family in Yemen share with me how desperate the situation has become and how it has got worse for many.

“First came the war and destruction, then came the hunger and cholera and now the deadly threat of coronavirus making the situation unbearable and the hunger even worse. Some have simply accepted their fate and die quietly at home.”

He thanked the public for donations to the DEC appeal for the seven places it is prioritising.  “The UK public have once again demonstrated their generosity and compassion. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported the DEC Coronavirus appeal so far, helping us to raise over £14 million.”

The DEC Coronavirus Appeal will help the most vulnerable people in six of the world’s most fragile states: Yemen and Syria; Somalia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Afghanistan. A total of 24 million displaced people live in crowded temporary shelter in these countries.

The appeal also includes the world’s largest refugee camp – in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, where more than 850,000 Rohingya refugees have sought sanctuary.

Despite the many challenges presented by the pandemic, the 14 DEC member charities are already present and working in refugee and displacement camps. They urgently need more funds to scale up their operations and save lives.

Stay up to date with developments by following the DEC on Twitter or Facebook.

The rights and health of refugees, migrants and stateless must be protected

A joint press release from The Office of the High Commissioner, United Nations Human Rights; International Organisation for Migration; World Health Organisation:

In the face of the COVID-19 crisis, we are all vulnerable. The virus has shown that it does not discriminate – but many refugees, those forcibly displaced, the stateless and migrants are at heightened risk.

Three-quarters of the world’s refugees and many migrants are hosted in developing regions where health systems are already overwhelmed and under-capacitated. Many live in overcrowded camps, settlements, makeshift shelters or reception centers, where they lack adequate access to health services, clean water and sanitation.

The situation for refugees and migrants held in formal and informal places of detention, in cramped and unsanitary conditions, is particularly worrying.

Considering the lethal consequences a COVID-19 outbreak would have, they should be released without delay. Migrant children and their families and those detained without a sufficient legal basis should be immediately released.

This disease can be controlled only if there is an inclusive approach which protects every individual’s rights to life and health. Migrants and refugees are disproportionately vulnerable to exclusion, stigma and discrimination, particulary when undocumented.

To avert a catastrophe, governments must do all they can to protect the rights and the health of everyone. Protecting the rights and the health of all people will in fact help control the spread of the virus.

It is vital that everyone, including all migrants and refugees, are ensured equal access to health services and are effectively included in national responses to COVID-19, including prevention, testing and treatment. Inclusion will help not only to protect the rights of refugees and migrants, but will also serve to protect public health and stem the global spread of COVID-19.

While many nations protect and host refugee and migrant populations, they are often not equipped to respond to crises such as Covid-19. To ensure refugees and migrants have adequate access to national health services, States may need additional financial support. This is where the world’s financial institutions can play a leading role in making funds available.

While countries are closing their borders and limiting cross-border movements, there are ways to manage border restrictions in a manner which respects international human rights and refugee protection standards, including the principle of non-refoulement, through quarantine and health checks.

More than ever, as COVID-19 poses a global threat to our collective humanity, our primary focus should be on the preservation of life, regardless of status. This crisis demands a coherent, effective international approach that leaves no-one behind.

At this crucial moment we all need to rally around a common objective, fighting this deadly virus. Many refugees, displaced, stateless people and migrants have skills and resources that can also be part of the solution.

We cannot allow fear or intolerance to undermine rights or compromise the effectiveness of responses to the global pandemic. We are all in this together. We can only defeat this virus when each and every one of us is protected.

 

 

Improving access to healthcare for vulnerable people

People who have experienced difficulty registering with a doctor’s surgery are to be given additional guidance through the launch of new information cards. 

The Access to Healthcare cards are designed to offer support to vulnerable groups including those experiencing homelessness, people seeking asylum, refugees and the Gypsy/Traveller community.

The information, which highlights an individual’s right to register, is written in a way that is clear, simple and easy to access.

The cards will also assist reception staff in identifying a patient’s need for an interpreter or assistance in filling out forms.

Public Health Minister Joe FitzPatrick said: “I am proud to be launching the Access to Healthcare information card which will ensure some of the most vulnerable groups in society can access the support and treatment they need.

“They will be distributed via the groups who work with Gypsy/Travellers, people seeking asylum, refugees and those people experiencing homelessness.

“The information provided on these cards will ensure good communication between patients and reception staff from the outset, leading to a more positive experience for everyone involved.”

Equalities Minister Christina McKelvie said: “I welcome the introduction of these information cards.

“By removing barriers to access we are demonstrating a practical approach to tackling discrimination and delivering equality. These cards represent a significant step towards improving access to public services for people.”

Katie Hawkins, a GP who works with homeless people at Edinburgh’s Access Practice, said: “I believe the cards are an extremely useful way of informing patients and front line staff of the right everyone has to primary care.

“As a GP working with those experiencing homelessness I see the direct consequences of a lack of access to primary care.

“I hope the cards will help more of the most marginalised in society to address their basic health needs.”

card one

card two

Letters: Immigrants are PEOPLE

Dear Editor

The word ‘immigrant’ is used freely but seldom in a good way. What is missing is the understanding that they are people, who for various reasons can no longer exist of live in their own country whether through war, economic squalor or changes in climate, making it impossible to survive.

They are asking for our support in their desperation to live.

Many people ‘walk by on the other side of the road’ but fortunately those who care are in the majority, willing to help but frustrated by those in power who see this human disaster only in terms of numbers, not women, children and men.

The extremes of indifference exhibited on the border of Mexico and America shows the depths to which some people in power are prepared to go, condemning vulnerable people for having to migrate just to exist.

The causes and events leading to this situation must be the target, not people.

A. Delahoy

Silverknowes Gardens

A welcoming country: support for refugee families ahead of arrival in Scotland

Refugees can now organise financial support for family members before they are reunited in Scotland. Up to £100,000 in Family Reunion Crisis Grants will smooth the path for new arrivals, bridging the gap before they can be assessed for benefits entitlement. Continue reading A welcoming country: support for refugee families ahead of arrival in Scotland

Scotland welcomes Syrian refugees

One in four Syrian refugees settles in Scotland

syria children

New figures have revealed that Scotland has welcomed just over 25% of the total number of Syrian refugees that have arrived in the UK through the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Programme (SVPRP) since 2015.

Since the SVPRP scheme was expanded in 2015, 7,055 Syrians have arrived in the UK in total, 1,800 of whom have settled in Scotland.

This news comes the same week it was revealed the UK Government has not taken in any child refugees under the Lord Dubs scheme this year, despite committing to resettle 3,000 unaccompanied child refugees from Syria by 2020.

Commenting, Northern and Leith MSP Ben Macpherson said: “It’s excellent that Scotland has welcomed over a quarter of those Syrian refugees who have arrived in the UK, under the resettlement programme, since 2015.

“But more needs to be done – in what is an off-the-scale humanitarian crisis that’s difficult to comprehend here at home.

“A recent all-party inquiry revealed that the UK public would not tolerate the UK Government turning away from this humanitarian crisis if they were more aware of what was happening. It also reported that UK ministers have done “as little as legally possible” to help unaccompanied lone children who have fled war and conflict, which has left them vulnerable to trafficking.

“It’s time for the UK Government to significantly step up its refugee resettlement efforts in the midst of what is possibly the worst humanitarian crisis since the Second World War.”

syria2

In a separate development, the Scottish and Welsh Governments have written jointly to the UK Minister for Immigration expressing concern about the treatment of unaccompanied child refugees.

Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Social Security and Equalities, Angela Constance and Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children, Carl Sargeant sent the following letter to Brandon Lewis, urging the UK Government to take into consideration the views and issues of the devolved Governments:

Dear Brandon,

Thank you very much for the time you have taken to meet with both of us on separate occasions over the summer months. We both look forward to working with you and we wish you well in this new portfolio. With regard to the meetings which have taken place, you have and will be hearing from both of us separately on the issues that were raised.

Both the Welsh Government and the Scottish Government are subject to UK Government process and procedure with regard to s67 of the Immigration Act 2016 (the Dubs amendment); and, s69-72 of the Act (transfer protocol and national transfer mechanism). Due to our mutual responsibilities for these areas in our devolved legislatures, we thought it would be helpful for all parties if we laid out our thoughts to you jointly.

With regard to s67, we have discussed these matters and our experience so far has been the same. From the start of the implementation of this scheme, we have struggled with the lack of information that has been forthcoming from those running this operation. This continues to be the case and we are aware that only a couple of hundred unaccompanied children have been transferred of the 480 placements identified. We are aware of the difficult circumstances that the emergency clearance of the Calais camps led to, and that at present, you are awaiting the outcome of the judicial review which makes it difficult to comment. However, we both feel that overall, the lack of planning and sharing of useful information from coordinators has inhibited our ability to plan ahead. We are seeking assurances from you that steps have been taken or are being put into place to mitigate against a repeat of these circumstances.

We understand you were meeting with your counterpart Ministers in the Member States as a means of resolving the transfer delays and we hope these meetings have achieved a positive outcome.

Separately, we would also like to refer to s69-72 of the Act which would put the National Transfer Mechanism onto a statutory footing in Wales and Scotland. We have discussed with you the requirement for a SI derives from the legal advice that our local authorities have received which describes a local authority’s liability requiring legislative underpinning. We understand this will result in the necessary timetable which allows for parliamentary process and we were pleased to hear of your commitment to pursuing this. We both remain committed to this piece of work and look forward to a satisfactory outcome.

We also note the report of the Human Trafficking Inquiry, initiated by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Human Trafficking and Modern Day Slavery, published on 10 July. We highlight statements with which we agree, and whilst we appreciate there is a difference in opinion as to the why and the how from the UK Government perspective, these statements provide for an outcome which we can all support, that of supporting vulnerable unaccompanied children:

‘The inquiry found no evidence that providing a safe route for children to travel to the UK acted as a ‘pull factor’ or encouraged traffickers. Instead the evidence showed that leaving children without safe and legal options left them in limbo, stranded in dangerous and often violent situations. In many instances this resulted in children turning to smugglers, putting themselves at risk of dangerous journeys and of exploitation to pay the smugglers.’

And the recommendation which says: The ‘Dubs scheme’, or Section 67 of the Immigration Act, needs to be open to children in practice and more children need to be included. This will require expanding the criteria so that it doesn’t exclude vulnerable children due to their age or nationality and a revised cut-off date. Most urgent is the quick and transparent processing of these applications. The administration of the Dubs scheme requires multi-agency teams of specialists on the ground where most children are located, including Calais and Dunkirk to build confidence in safe routes and resistance to traffickers.’

We are grateful for the recent meetings we have had with you, to discuss s67 and wider refugee and asylum seeker matters and look forward to continuing our engagement with you on these important concerns for all of our Governments. We also look forward to receiving replies to our as yet unanswered correspondences.

We are copying this letter to the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd MP, the Secretary of State for Scotland, David Mundell MP and the Secretary of State for Wales, Alun Cairns MP.

Yours sincerely

Carl Sargeant AC/AM                                                        Angela Constance MSP

Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Gymunedau a Phlant     Cabinet Secretary for Communities,

Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children        Social Security and Equalities

Cc.:

Home Secretary

Secretaries of State for Scotland and Wales

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