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128 Answers needed on EU citizens in post-Brexit UK

European citizens rights group, The 3 Million, lodged 128 questions to the Home Office regarding the status of European Union citizens in the United Kingdom after Brexit. Previous reports have flagged that issues surrounding the EU citizens’ residency and settled status remain unresolved, with children – whose status is dependent on their parents’ – being […]

Campaign wins government U-turn on hostile environment in schools

According to the Guardian: Campaigners are claiming victory amid reports that the government is to back down on a controversial requirement that schools must collect data on their pupils’ nationality and country of birth. The campaign group Against Borders for Children (ABC), which has fought against the policy since its introduction in September 2016, welcomed

Route to your Rights- Project Findings

March 2018 The Migrants’ Rights Network (MRN) was funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation to implement the Route to your Rights (RTYR) project, a qualitative research and advocacy project, which was conducted from August 2017 until March 2018. The project explored issues that push migrants into a more vulnerable state, like labour exploitation and homelessness

The dire realities of homeless migrant families in the UK

Violet Dickenson and John Grayson, who have worked with the South Yorkshire Migration & Asylum Action Group (SYMAAG), wrote two articles – here and here – for the Open Democracy website providing details about the lives of homeless refugee families forced to live in unsafe hostels. The families are placed in hostels because they have “no

New rules preventing young asylum seekers from studying

Asylum seekers who are awaiting a Home Office decisions cannot work, must often reside as a fixed address, and report regularly to a Home Office outpost. In addition, it appears that new guidance introduced since January 2018 is also preventing young asylum seekers from studying, the Observer reports.  “Significant numbers” of young refugees have been

Disabled British citizen with no documents held in detention for months

The case of Paul Tate, reported on my the Guardian, exemplifies the Kafka-esque proportions that immigration detention decisions can take.  Paul Tate says he was born in Wales (Bangor) and has never left the UK in his life. Yet following his release from prison, he has been in immigration detention in Morton Hall for 4

Asylum seeking children still not getting the care they need, says report

Last week, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) released a report following inspection of the Home Office’s treatment of unaccompanied asylum seeking minors.  At issue is the extent to which the Home Office considers the child’s “best interests” in its practices, procedures and decisions. The report shows that past improvements on the

Waiting times for immigration appeals rise by 45%

The Independent ran a story last week about the length of time that people who appeal Home Office immigration decisions have to wait. Average waiting times, data shows, have increased dramatically – by 45% – over the last year.  In 2016, an appeal took on average 31 weeks. The process now takes a year (52

Refugee family left homeless because judged “resilient enough”

A couple and their two daughters, who fled the Syrian conflict in 2012, were evicted from their privately rented residence in Enfield two weeks ago, the Independent reports. They have been refused housing support because they were judged “resilient enough” to face homelessness. Muhamed and Rouzeh Shouesh – trained as an engineer and a solicitor,

Right to Rent is ineffective, and unmonitored

Last week, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) released a report reviewing the “Right to Rent” scheme.  Right to Rent is part of the panoply of measures introduced by the government to create a “hostile environment” for migrants in the UK. Its aim is to prevent undocumented migrants from accessing rented accommodation

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