Category: Asylum

Iraqi interpreters offered non-existent escape route

Tuesday, October 9th, 2007

The lifeline offered by Gordon Brown to a few of the interpreters who’ve risked their lives assisting the British forces in Iraq is being dissected across the blogosphere - the marvellous Dan Hardie for starters.

So there’s only one thing for me to add.

David Miliband’s statement assures us that on top of the new procedure:

Alternatively, these staff will be able to apply for exceptional leave to enter the UK

I’m just wondering how given that they abolished “exceptional leave to enter or remain” back in April 2003. The guidance says, and it seems fairly unequivocal to me:

As of today exceptional leave has ceased to exist.

I expect it’s pretty cold comfort for the interpreters that there used to be a category of leave they could have applied for, we just abolished it before we invaded Iraq and asked them for help. Friendly of us, don’t you think?

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British guards ‘assault and racially abuse’ deportees

Friday, October 5th, 2007

There isn’t really anything to add to today’s Independent front page:

Hundreds of failed asylum-seekers deported from the United Kingdom have been beaten and racially abused by British escort teams who are paid to take them back to their home countries.

The scale of the alleged abuse has been uncovered in a joint investigation by The Independent and a group co-ordinating the representation and medical care of failed asylum-seekers.

A dossier of 200 cases, collated by doctors, lawyers, immigration centre visitors and campaign groups over the past two years, has unearthed shocking claims of physical and mental mistreatment of some of the most vulnerable people in our asylum system.

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Asylum seeker deportations drop again

Tuesday, August 21st, 2007

Is the Home Office really only capable of doing one thing at a time?

Asylum seeker deportations have dropped again this quarter, the Telegraph reports. And the government’s explanation according to the Press Association?

A Home Office spokesman said the fall in the asylum removals was because officials were concentrating on deporting foreign criminals rather than would-be refugees.

Clearly multi-tasking is just a step too far.

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