Row over UK child visas as Ukrainian violinist’s three-month wait continues – The Guardian

Posted July 11th, 2022 in asylum, children, government departments, immigration, news, refugees, Russia, Ukraine, visas, war by tracey

‘A talented 17-year-old violinist living on the frontline in south-east Ukraine has been left waiting three months for a British visa, revealing serious flaws in government promises to help unaccompanied children.’

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The Guardian, 10th July 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Home Office ‘undermining immigration watchdog’s legitimacy’ by failing to implement recommendations – The Independent

Posted July 1st, 2022 in asylum, government departments, immigration, news, ombudsmen, refugees by tracey

‘The Home Office risks undermining the immigration watchdog’s legitimacy by failing to implement its recommendations, an official has said.’

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The Independent, 30th June 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

GPS tagging of migrants appears to contradict Home Office guidance – The Guardian

‘The Home Office appears to have contradicted its own guidance on GPS tagging, which prioritised “very high harm offenders”, after it announced the devices would be used on asylum seekers arriving in the UK.’

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The Guardian, 19th June 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Prime Minister must stop attacks on legal professionals, say Bar Council and Law Society – The Bar Council

‘Following the Prime Minister’s comments suggesting lawyers representing migrants were “abetting the work of criminal gangs”, the Bar Council and Law Society of England and Wales have issued [a] joint statement.’

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The Bar Council, 14th June 2022

Source: www.barcouncil.org.uk

First migrants set for Rwanda to be given final notice – Home Office

Posted June 6th, 2022 in asylum, government departments, immigration, news, refugees by tracey

‘The Home Office has begun issuing formal directions to the first group of people being relocated to Rwanda.’

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Home Office, 1st June 2022

Source: www.gov.uk

Externalisation of asylum in Europe: Unpacking the UK-Rwanda Asylum Partnership Agreement – EIN Blog

‘The UK-Rwanda Asylum Partnership Agreement (APA) is the latest in a line of cooperative asylum arrangements that seek to shift asylum responsibility from destination states in the Global North to countries in the developing world. Such arrangements are generally for the purpose of deterring and deflecting protection seekers and, as such, the APA should be understood as a form of externalisation, an umbrella concept for the efforts of certain states to externalise certain basic functions (in this case asylum processing and protection) in the areas of border control and asylum.’

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EIN Blog, 31st May 2022

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Reconsidering Asylum: Is it for those who need protection? – EIN Blog

Posted May 30th, 2022 in asylum, immigration, international law, news, refugees by sally

‘In a recent workshop, funded by the Society of Legal Scholars, several legal practitioners, NGOs, policy experts and legal scholars in the field of asylum and nationality studies came together to analyse the asylum related provisions of the new Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (“the Act”). Whilst in Bill form, the UNHCR found the provisions “would penalise most refugees seeking asylum in the country via damaging and unjustified penalties, creating an asylum model that undermines established international refugee protection rules and practices”.’

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EIN Blog, 26th May 2022

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Rwanda plan challenged over alleged failure to identify risks for LGBTQ+ refugees – The Guardian

‘Priti Patel’s plan to send refugees on a one-way ticket to Rwanda is being legally challenged over the government’s alleged failure to identify risks facing vulnerable groups such as LGBTQ+ people.’

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The Guardian, 24th May 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Priti Patel blames lawyers as she admits Rwanda plan will ‘take time’ – The Guardian

Posted May 10th, 2022 in government departments, immigration, law firms, news, refugees by sally

‘Priti Patel has admitted that it will take time to establish the government’s high-profile plan to send people who arrive in the UK without authorisation to Rwanda, amid growing suspicion that it will not solve the migration crisis in the Channel.’

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The Guardian, 10th May 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Priti Patel’s Rwanda plan for UK asylum seekers faces its first legal challenge – The Guardian

‘The first legal action has been launched against Priti Patel’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda as the UN’s refugee agency raised concerns that the UK is “inviting” other European countries to adopt the same divisive immigration policy.’

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The Guardian, 7th May 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Borders Act to overhaul asylum system becomes law – Home Office

Posted April 29th, 2022 in asylum, bills, government departments, immigration, news, refugees by tracey

‘The Nationality and Borders Act passed today (Thursday 28 April 2022) will deliver the biggest overhaul of our asylum system in decades.’

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Home Office, 28th April 2022

Source: www.gov.uk

UK’s visa schemes ‘creating and heightening’ trafficking and exploitation risks – The Independent

‘The UK’s visa schemes for Ukrainian refugees are “lacking in clarity, resourcing and accountability” and are heightening the risk of trafficking and exploitation, according to a report.’

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The Independent, 29th April 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Outsourcing asylum seekers: the case of Rwanda and the UK – EIN Blog

Posted April 19th, 2022 in asylum, human rights, news, refugees by sally

‘UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on April 14 2022 that Britain would relocate some asylum seekers arriving in the UK to Rwanda. The plan was condemned by the opposition as well as human rights groups such as Amnesty International. The UK has settled on Rwanda after earlier reports that it had been considering Albania and Ghana. In the light of the latest developments, Cristiano d’Orsi, an expert on the law and asylum seekers, provides insights into why Rwanda.’

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EIN Blog, 14th April 2022

Source: www.ein.org.uk

Stop matching lone female Ukraine refugees with single men, UK told – The Guardian

Posted April 13th, 2022 in asylum, government departments, immigration, news, refugees, Russia, Ukraine, war, women by tracey

‘UN agency intervenes in wake of claims predatory men using Homes for Ukraine scheme to target vulnerable.’

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The Guardian, 13th April 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Nationality and Borders Bill – Mills & Reeve

Posted March 31st, 2022 in asylum, bills, citizenship, news, refugees, treaties by sally

‘The Nationality and Borders Bill sets out the Government’s provisions to overhaul the UK’s asylum system. The Bill has been highly controversial from the outset and was quickly labelled by campaigners as the “Anti-Refugee Bill”. The UN Refugee Agency (“UNHCR”) has also highlighted significant concerns regarding many of the Bill’s provisions.’

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Mills & Reeve, 30th March 2022

Source: www.mills-reeve.com

UK’s draft refugee and police laws are ‘human rights vandalism’, says Amnesty – The Guardian

Posted March 29th, 2022 in bills, human rights, news, police, refugees by sally

‘The government’s attack on fundamental rights and protections enshrined in UK law is an “act of human rights vandalism” that would curtail the ability of people to hold the state to account, Amnesty International has claimed.’

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The Guardian, 29th March 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Transport operators face £2,000 fines for bringing Ukrainians without visas to UK – The Independent

Posted March 8th, 2022 in fines, immigration, news, refugees, transport, Ukraine, visas by tracey

‘Transport operators face fines of up to £2,000 per person if they bring Ukrainian refugees without the right visas to the UK, The Independent can reveal as hundreds reach Calais.’

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The Independent, 7th March 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Will The UK Welcome People Fleeing Putin’s War In Ukraine? – Each Other

‘As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, questions rage, alongside the war, about how the UK should protect Ukrainians seeking refuge.’

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Each Other, 1st March 2022

Source: eachother.org.uk

Lords reject clause in bill criminalising refugees who arrive by irregular route – The Guardian

Posted March 1st, 2022 in bills, citizenship, immigration, news, refugees by sally

‘Boris Johnson’s nationality and borders bill has suffered four defeats in the House of Lords, including the removal of a crucial plank of the government’s immigration strategy that would have criminalised refugees who arrive in the UK through an irregular route.’

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The Guardian, 28th February 2022

Source: www.theguardian.com

Vicky Kapogianni: Clause 45 of the Nationality and Borders Bill: A Quasi-Open Window of Access to Justice – UK Constitutional Law Association

Posted February 24th, 2022 in asylum, bills, human rights, judicial review, legal aid, news, refugees by sally

‘Access to justice is a fundamental right in the common law and an essential part of the rule of law. In R v Lord Chancellor Ex Parte Witham, Laws J stated that the common law affords special weight to the right of access to the courts as a constitutional right. Such a constitutional right derives chiefly from two sources, the common law per se and Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). One of the major issues, however, for asylum seekers is the fact that the guarantees afforded under Article 6 ECHR, do not apply to asylum decisions. Its wider protection is constrained to the determination of “civil rights and obligations” and the right to asylum is not considered a “civil right” within the context of Article 6 (1) ECHR. Therefore, asylum seekers whose applications for refugee status or humanitarian protection have been unsuccessful, including refugees whose leave to enter or remain has been revoked, are subject to removal under section 10 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 24th February 2022

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org