Increased Risk of Homelessness for Recognised Refugees
The Home Office is reported to have reduced the notice period a successful asylum seeker is given to leave their asylum accommodation once they have been granted refugee status. It was 28 days and now it is reported to be just 7 days. If so, this just isn’t enough time for refugees to get a job or access benefits, as previous research has conclusively shown. In 2018, the Red Cross even proposed increasing the period to 56 days to reduce the risk of homelessness for newly recognised refugees. The Home Office has said that there has been no change in policy. So what is actually happening?
When a person is granted refugee leave and they are in asylum accommodation (note I am only referring to support provided under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 in this article), four things should happen. They should be sent: An asylum decision letter, Their biometric residence permit, A “discontinuation” letter by the Home Office telling them their support will end, and A notice to quit from the accommodation provider.
The order in which these happen is very important, with disastrous consequences if not done effectively.
Read more: Freemovement, http://tinyurl.com/yzj6aekz
Continuing Conflicts That Create Refugees - September 2023
Eleven Deteriorated Situations
Ecuador, Zimbabwe, Somalia, Ethiopia Mali, Central African Republic, Chad, Gabon, Democratic Republic Of Congo, Cyprus, Syria
Military officers seized power from President Ali Bongo in Gabon moments after authorities announced his re-election for a third term.
In Syria, a major battle broke out between the regime and the northwest’s dominant rebel group Hei’at Tahrir al-Sham as Russia renewed airstrikes, while the Islamic State killed dozens as it stepped up attacks in the country’s centre.
President Lasso declared a nationwide state of emergency in Ecuador following a spate of political assassinations in the lead-up to the presidential election.
In Cyprus, violent skirmishes between Turkish Cypriots and UN personnel in the buffer zone injured multiple peacekeepers and Turkish Cypriot police officers and sparked a strong diplomatic rebuke.
Improved Situations: Colombia, Guatemala
The Colombian government’s landmark ceasefire with the National Liberation Army guerrilla group took effect, marking an important step forward in President Petro’s “total peace” efforts.
Guatemala’s presidential election went ahead despite judicial and other interference, resulting in a landslide victory for centre-left candidate Bernardo Arévalo endorsed by the outgoing president.
Outlook for September 2023
Conflict Risk Alerts: Mali, Niger
Significant clashes broke out in Mali’s north between government forces and former rebels for the first time since the 2015 peace agreement. September could see more violence and the collapse of the peace process as the UN mission’s withdrawal continues.
The West African regional bloc ECOWAS continued to threaten the use of force in Niger to restore constitutional order following the coup in July. An intervention could trigger major pushback and put Niger and the wider region at risk of war.
Resolution Opportunities: None
Aside from the scores of conflict situations Crisis Watch usually cover, we tracked significant developments in Bahrain, Nile Waters and Senegal
Source: International Crisis Group
https://www.crisisgroup.org/crisiswatch
70th Anniversary European Convention on Human Rights
“The European Convention on Human Rights embodies the fundamental values of our continent and puts in place a unique system for enforcing our basic rights and freedoms. 70 years after the Convention first came into force, it has never been more important than it is today.
“Hundreds of millions of people across our 46 member states have benefited from the Convention’s protection and continue to do so every single day, sometimes even without knowing it.
“Working together with national authorities, following the devastation of the Second World War, we have used the Convention as a blueprint for building a better Europe, helping to ensure stability and security for seven decades.
“The horrendous events of the last 18 months show what can happen when states turn their back on those values and just how quickly the achievements of the last 70 years can be undone.
“Now, more than at any point in the Convention’s history, the people of Europe need our nations to unite behind the Convention system and its values – as European leaders promised to do at the Reykjavik Summit in May this year – for the benefit of us all, and the generations to come.”
Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pej?inovi? - 01/09/2023
Sanctions Can Sometimes Obstruct Peacemaking
Sanctions have become an increasingly prominent tool of U.S. statecraft. As the use of sanctions has increased, so, too, has awareness of their collateral effects. The U.S. government has adopted new policies to mitigate the problems sanctions can cause. While important, these reforms are incomplete.
Why Does it Matter? While the U.S. looks to sanctions to further its goals in numerous conflicts, sanctions also sometimes obstruct peacemaking – that is, activities in the service of violence prevention and conflict resolution. The more Washington uses sanctions, the more far-reaching the downsides are and the more pressing it is to address them.S
What should be Done? The U.S. government should better align sanctions policy with peacemaking efforts. It could do so by setting clear objectives for sanctions programs, subjecting them to rigorous periodic review, expanding and making permanent carveouts for peace activities, and addressing private-sector concerns about investment in previously sanctioned jurisdictions.
Read more: Crisis Group, https://tinyurl.com/3393v9ae
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Home Office Defies High Court by Placing 100 Asylum-Seeker Children in Hotels
The government’s continued use of hotels has been condemned by human rights and refugee organisations since more than 200 children have gone missing, including dozens who vanished from one hotel in Brighton.
One of the reasons why children continue to be placed in hotels, some for a number of weeks, is that Kent county council says it cannot cope with the number of children arriving. The council’s geographical location means it has responsibility to take into care lone children who arrive at the Kent coast in small boats. It has warned that they are struggling to meet their legal obligations to UK as well as asylum-seeker children.
Both the Home Office and Kent county council have been found by the high court to have acted unlawfully by failing to look after these children properly.
Read more: Diane Taylor, Guardian, http://tinyurl.com/2tf9mwvx
No Slowdown in Rise of Asylum Backlog - 170,000 Asylum Seekers Await a Decision
As was widely reported by the media, the Home Office last week released its latest set of immigration statistics. Much of the press coverage focused on the growing backlog of asylum seekers waiting for an initial decision on their claim.
In response to the release of the immigration statistics, both the Refugee Council and the Law Society issued statements criticising the growing backlog. The Law Society called the scale of the backlog "staggering" and said the figures show the inefficiency and under resourcing of the asylum system. Enver Solomon, CEO of the Refugee Council, commented: "The record high asylum backlog is having a devastating impact on the people we work with, whose lives are put on hold indefinitely while they anxiously wait to hear whether they will be allowed to stay in the UK."
Both groups also expressed concerns over the high number of asylum claims that are now being withdrawn, meaning the Home Office will no longer consider the claim and the claimant will not receive a decision.
Read more: EIN, https://tinyurl.com/fj8cvehe
More Delays, More Refusals ‘Bad Faith’: The Latest Trafficking Statistics
The latest trafficking statistics show a huge increase in both refusals and delays, suggesting the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 had had a disastrous impact on the protection of survivors of modern slavery. Most of the trafficking provisions of the legislation came into effect on 30 January 2023. Changes were simultaneously made to the modern slavery statutory guidance and the immigration rules. The newly published data contains the first full quarter of statistics since then.
Refusals at the first stage of the national referral mechanism for survivors of modern slavery have increased significantly. Between April and June 2023 there were 1,348 negative reasonable grounds decisions for adults who had been referred to the national referral mechanism. That amounts to 75% of the total 1,809 decisions made.
This contrasts with the period October to December 2022, before the relevant sections of the Act were brought into force, when 2,322 decisions were made and only 16% of those were negative.
The impact of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 has been both significant and damaging to survivors of modern slavery who need support.
Bad faith exclusions:This is where the Home Offce decid that they have claimed to be a victim of modern slavery ‘in bad faith’. This was included in the Act because of assertions of abuse of the system made by the government. There have been precisely zero ‘disqualification requests’ on bad faith grounds.
Read more: Freemovement, https://tinyurl.com/2p8xukj7
General Grounds for Refusal: Deception, False Information and Innocent Mistakes
Making a mistake on an immigration application form can be disastrous. If the mistake is interpreted by officials as an attempt to mislead or deceive, the application may be refused. If the application was for entry clearance, it can also lead to a ten-year ban on re-entry to the UK. Following a Court of Appeal decision that drew a distinction between submission of a false document and the use of deception, this distinction has now made it into the immigration rules. The relevant rules are set out in Part 9 of the immigration rules at paragraphs 9.7.1 to 9.8.7. These must be read with paragraph 9.1.1 which sets out which sections of Part 9 do not apply to certain applications, for example Appendix FM.
Following a Court of Appeal decision that drew a distinction between submission of a false document and the use of deception, this distinction has now made it into the immigration rules. The relevant rules are set out in Part 9 of the immigration rules at paragraphs 9.7.1 to 9.8.7. These must be read with paragraph 9.1.1 which sets out which sections of Part 9 do not apply to certain applications, for example Appendix FM.
There are Home Office policies that may be useful if such a situation does arise, although of course it is far, far preferable to avoid such a problem in the first place.
Read more: Freemovement, http://tinyurl.com/26aac4b3
Adult Dependent Relative Visas: Not (Quite) Impossible
Adult dependent relative visas have one of the highest refusal rates of all immigration routes. Between 2017 and 2020, 96% of applications were refused. In this article I look at why these applications often go wrong and what you can do to try make them go right. This is not a template for success, but it is intended as a general guide to help you help the Home Office make the right decision.
What is an Adult Dependent Relative Visa?
Before we get into what this visa is, let’s be clear what it is not. This is not simply a parent visa. This is not simply an elderly person’s visa. This is not a visa for retired people of independent means. This is not a visa for financially dependent but otherwise healthy parents. An adult dependent relative visa is something considerably more than all these things.
Read more: Freemovement, https://tinyurl.com/2shja5n2
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