Asylum offices ‘in a constant state of crisis’, say whistleblowers

25.12.2017: Guardian: Two whistleblowers claim Home Office departments delay asylum applications for profit

Staff in the Home Office’s asylum directorate are undertrained, overworked and operating in a “constant state of crisis”, two whistleblowers have claimed, as applicants endure long waits to have their case dealt with due to internal pressures. Continue reading “Asylum offices ‘in a constant state of crisis’, say whistleblowers”

 ‘Injustice in Immigration Detention’, an independent report by Dr Anna Lindley

Injustice in Immigration Detention – Bar Council: New research reveals that immigration detention ‘operates in a very unjust way’, has a ‘flawed statutory framework’ & ‘inadequate routes to challenge decisions.’ Our international reputation is at risk’, warns Bar Council.

Migrants held in detention for too long with inadequate access to the courts or to legal help are among a catalogue of problems highlighted by Injustice in Immigration Detention’, an independent report by Dr Anna Lindley of SOAS, published today.

also, please note, from Detention Forum:  A Conservative MP supports a call for time limit, suggesting 28 days

Andrew Mitchell MP has now written for ConservativesHome calling for a time limit.  Some of us will be meeting his office early in the new year to follow this up.  Please share it widely with the hashtag of #Time4aTimeLimit

Manchester immigration detention motion: these walls must fall

Manchester City Council became the first local authority in Britain to pass a motion condemning immigration detention: The These Walls Must Fall motion was proposed by Moss Side councillor Mahadi Sharif Mahamad, and means that the City Council is now fully behind the campaign. After meeting with local residents in the These Walls Must Fall campaign, councillor Mahamad took the proposal to his fellow councillors. Continue reading “Manchester immigration detention motion: these walls must fall”

HRW: Call to Greece #Opentheislands

13.12.2017: Good news! Last week the Greek government pledged to transfer 5,000 asylum seekers trapped on Greece’s islands, living in dangerous, overcrowded conditions, to mainland Greece by December 15. Currently, more than 1,500 people have already been transferred.

This decision came from the top – Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. Which means we owe a huge thank you to everyone who reached out to him through our campaign, calling on him to protect these asylum seekers.

This is a major positive step, but there is more yet to do. Another 10,000 plus asylum seekers will remain trapped on the islands – some forced to sleep in summer tents or on the ground – because Greece, together with other EU countries, have a policy in place to prevent these people from leaving the islands and to try to return them to Turkey. Continue reading “HRW: Call to Greece #Opentheislands”

Quakers: Sanctuary Everywhere Manifesto – challenging the ‘hostile environment’

Challenging immigration policies 5.12.2017

Britain’s Quakers are pledging to challenge immigration policies. The position takes a stand against the scandal of indefinite immigration detention, pledges support for ‘new, peaceful, safer routes of migration’, and opposes the possibility of unjust deportations and forced removals.

Continue reading “Quakers: Sanctuary Everywhere Manifesto – challenging the ‘hostile environment’”