ICIBI

The Home Affairs Select Committee has interviewed the Government’s choice for Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration. Full information is available at the link below, but here is the ‘Conclusion’ of HASC:

Conclusion

12. Mr Tuckett demonstrated significant experience of senior leadership in the public sector. We agree with the advisory assessment panel that Mr Tuckett meets the criteria for the position of Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration.

13. That said, Mr Tuckett resides in Finland, and told us he travels to the UK for work as required. To operate effectively we believe that the ICIBI needs to spend a significant proportion of their time in London, or conducting inspections across the UK. We are also concerned about the reputational risk this creates. Mr Tuckett said he would be willing to work in London five days a week if necessary. If appointed, it will be for Mr Tuckett to decide on his precise working patterns, but we would expect the majority of his working time to be spent in London, or on inspections.

14. In addition, Mr Tuckett repeatedly highlighted his intention to work collaboratively with the Home Office, but was less reflective about how he would challenge Ministers and senior officials when required. In the previous Parliament there were difficulties in the relationship between the Home Office and ICIBI—particularly when it came to the publication of reports submitted by the ICIBI. It will be essential, if Mr Tuckett is appointed as ICIBI, that he demonstrates his independence and ability to challenge the Home Office—both privately and publicly—when necessary. Mr Tuckett may also wish to reflect more on the public facing aspects of the role of the ICIBI, in improving levels of public trust.

December 11, 2024December 11, 2024

ICIBI report: modern slavery decision-making

11 December 2024: Inspection report published: An inspection of the Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority (January – June 2024)

This inspection examined the performance of the Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority since its establishment in 2021.

This inspection examined the performance of the Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority (IECA), assessing its practices and processes for making decisions, its approach to assuring the timeliness and quality of those decisions, and its management of safeguarding issues. 

The inspection was initiated by my predecessor, David Neal, and the bulk of the evidence was gathered in January and February 2024. However, it was not possible to conclude the inspection in the usual manner as there was no Independent Chief Inspector in post from 21 February to 3 June 2024. In June, I asked the Home Office for some additional information and updated evidence. My report, including the Key Findings and Recommendations, reflects both the original evidence and this new material.    

March 4, 2024March 4, 2024

The chief inspector of borders and immigration angered ministers by exposing an ineffective, cruel system

4 March 2024: Hansard: Dame Diana Johnson (Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Office if he will make a statement on the publication of 13 reports by the former independent chief inspector of borders and immigration on 29 February and how the inspectorate will now operate in the absence of a chief inspector or deputy?

3 March 2024: Guardian: The Guardian view on asylum failures: David Neal was sacked for telling the truth

The chief inspector of borders and immigration angered ministers by exposing an ineffective, cruel system

here is a role in public life, for sure, for people who speak truth to power,” said David Neal, the sacked UK borders inspector, at a hearing of the home affairs select committee last week. It is a role that Mr Neal, who once commanded the 1st Military Police Brigade, did his best to perform. Independent inspectorates play a vital role in upholding standards – particularly when their job is to inspect places otherwise hidden from view. Often, they reveal problems that make ministers uncomfortable. But the truths unearthed by Mr Neal about the borders and asylum system are ones they do not want even to hear.

March 1, 2024

Child asylum seekers in UK made to play game about who gets foster care places

1 March 2024: Guardian: Child asylum seekers in UK made to play game about who gets foster care places

Home Office inquiry opens after ‘insensitive, upsetting’ treatment of children in hotel, who had to guess who would be next to leave

The Home Office has launched an inquiry after staff made unaccompanied asylum-seeking children play a game in which they had to guess who would be the next one to be placed in foster care, a watchdog’s report has disclosed.

The report, one of 13 written by the borders inspectorate and released on Thursday, also found that agency workers employed to look after children as young as nine had received “insufficient” background checks and training.

The findings from David Neal were set out in stark terms finally published by the Home Office on Thursday after months of delays.

March 1, 2024March 1, 2024

ICIBI: How a sacked official blew the whistle on new lows in the asylum system

28 February 2024: Guardian: Wednesday briefing: How a sacked official blew the whistle on new lows in the asylum system

In today’s newsletter: Why David Neal lost his job, and what he had to say about the faltering immigration system

Good morning. When then-home secretary Priti Patel appointed David Neal as the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration in 2021, the Commons home affairs committee refused to endorse the decision. They were worried that the recruitment process had been inadequate and said they had seen no evidence that he was “confident to challenge performance publicly”. Well, they’ve seen it now.

Last week, David Neal was sacked from his job by James Cleverly, now the home secretary, just a month before he was due to stand down. Neal’s crime was to disclose unauthorised information to the media – a tactic that he appears to have resorted to after 15 reports he wrote uncovering problems with the immigration system went unpublished, instead gathering dust on a Home Office shelf. Now Neal has told the same parliamentary committee of “shocking leadership” at the Home Office and said he was “sacked for doing my job” – and his testimony paints a grim picture of the state of the accommodation centres where the government houses asylum seekers.

February 20, 2024February 21, 2024

It’s scandalous

Updated 20 February 2024: The Government is really angry with Dave Neal for speaking out: BBC: Immigration watchdog sacked after critical news stories

Mr Neal, whose tenure was due to end on 21 March, told the Times on Tuesday that he had not made the decision to speak to the media “lightly”. He added: “But I’ve been forced into this because my reports aren’t being published.”

“I’ve spent all my working life protecting this country, I’ve identified a security failing and I’ve brought it back to the Home Office,” he is quoted as saying.

“There’s a strong public interest here and that’s why I’ve done what I’ve done. The border is there to keep us safe, it’s critical that there are clear auditable risk decisions made to protect every one of us in the country.”

June 24, 2023November 29, 2023

ICIBI Inspection Plan 2023 – 24

4 April 2023: ICIBI: Please note the ICIBI’s intended inspection regime for the coming year: 2023-24

This includes Rwanda ‘Country of Origin’ information that guides the Home Office staff in decision-making, trafficking, contingency accommodation, treatment of people arriving by small boats, age assessments, and adults at risk in detention

Updates will appear below.

June 17, 2023June 17, 2023

ILPA’s Response to the ICIBI’s Call for Evidence: An Inspection of Asylum Casework

12 June 2023: Immigration Law Practitioners Association – ILPA: Date published: 12 June 2023

With many thanks to all members who contributed to this written evidence, ILPA’s Response to the ICIBI’s Call for Evidence: An Inspection of Asylum Casework 2023 can be read below. [Document Date: Friday June 9, 2023]

The response is here: ILPA’s Response to the ICIBI Call for Evidence: An Inspection of Asylum Casework 2023 (9 June 2023)

March 25, 2023April 4, 2023

ICIBI annual report for 2021-22 published

22 March 2023: Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration: The Chief Inspector’s annual report for the business year 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 has been laid in Parliament.

Publishing his annual report, David Neal said:

Commenting on the publication of his annual report for 2021-22, David Neal said:

The UK Borders Act 2007 requires the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration to make a report to the Home Secretary each year on the performance of immigration, asylum, nationality, and customs functions. This annual report provides a valuable opportunity for me to reflect on the findings of my inspections and to draw out wider themes and issues.

In my annual report for 2021-22, I highlighted three areas of particular concern. First, I comment on the need for the Home Office to develop greater resilience in the face of ‘crisis’ so that the extent to which unforeseen challenges disrupt the department’s routine operations is minimised. Secondly, I note that several of my inspections pointed to a need for the Home Office to adopt a greater focus on vulnerability, particularly when its safeguarding responsibilities are in tension with its immigration control objectives. Finally, I point to the perennial problem of the poor quality of the data on which the Home Office relies to carry out its borders and immigration functions, an issue that arises in almost every ICIBI inspection.
Continue reading “ICIBI annual report for 2021-22 published”

February 22, 2023April 4, 2023

ICIBI Inspection Plan 2022-23

22 February 2023: Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration – ICIBI: Inspection report published: A reinspection of family reunion applications September – October 2022

This inspection examined the Home Office’s management of family reunion applications between 1 January 2022 and 30 September 2022, focusing on progress relating to implementation of recommendations two, three and four from ICIBI’s ‘An inspection of family reunion applications (June – December 2019)’.

I welcome the publication of my reinspection report of family reunion applications. The family reunion immigration route allows close relatives of an individual who has been recognised as a refugee in the UK to obtain permission to join their family member in this country. This report follows, and builds upon, four previous inspections of this area carried out by my predecessor.

Sadly, my inspection team found that rather than building on the recommendations resulting from ICIBI’s last inspection in 2019, the Home Office’s performance has actually deteriorated. This inspection reveals a system beset with delays and a team ill-equipped to manage the complexity and volume of applications awaiting consideration. The result has been unacceptable waiting times for applicants.

The backlog of undecided applications stood at almost 8,000 at the time of this inspection, with applicants consistently waiting over double the 60-working-day service standard for a decision. There was no evidence of any prioritisation of these based on vulnerability; applications sat in a pile and would only be expedited as a result of MP correspondence, threat of litigation or sheer luck. Only then was any assessment of vulnerability made by a decision maker. This is unacceptable.

Category: ICIBI

Appointment of the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration – John Tuckett

17 February 2025: Appointment of the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration