LGBTI Children Have the Right to Safety and Equality
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBTI) children are often victims of bullying and violence in schools, at home and via social media. This has a serious effect on their well-being and prevents openness about their personal identity. Like all children, LGBTI [i] children are entitled to enjoy human rights and require a safe environment in order to participate fully in society.

Responses to bullying - According to a survey carried out by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), at least 60% of LGBT respondents had personally experienced negative comments or conduct at school because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. 80% had witnessed negative comments or conduct as a result of a schoolmate being perceived as LGBT. Given the frequency of negative behaviour directed at LGBT students, it is not surprising that the survey also found that two out of three LGBT children hid their LGBT identity while at school.
Read more: Nils Muiznieks, Commissioner for Human Rights, 02/10/14

The real and imagined challenges of an ethnically diverse Britain were the focus of a recent roundtable, hosted by the Guardian and the British Academy at this autumn's Labour party conference. The aim was to discuss whether greater levels of ethnic diversity resulted in more or less social trust and community spirit, particularly at a time when immigration is constantly in the headlines.
Read more: Guardian, 30/09/14

Moazzam Begg Freed After Terrorism Case Against Him Collapses
The prosecution of the former Guantánamo inmate Moazzam Begg has dramatically collapsed after the police and crown prosecutors were handed secret intelligence material that undermined the terrorism case against him. Five days before Begg was due to go on trial on a string of terrorism charges, which carried prison terms of up to 15 years, prosecutors announced at the Old Bailey that they had "recently become aware of relevant material" that obliged them to offer no evidence.

He was released from Belmarsh high-security prison in south London after the judge entered a formal verdict of not guilty. Speaking to reporters at the gates of the prison, Begg said he had wanted his "day in court" but was happy to be a free man.

"I need to reconnect with my family again," he said. "I need to understand what it's like to be a free man and I think that it's important to point out some of the government's failures in its foreign policy and its internal policy: its clear demonising of the Muslim community."
Read More: Ian Cobain, The Guardian, <> 01/10/14

IRCs: Children [Policy to separate families will continue]
Lord Foulkes of Cumnock to ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the recommendations made by Barnardo's in its report of April 2014 on the treatment of children in the Cedars facility; which, if any, of the recommendations have been acted upon; and what actions have been taken.

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Bates) (Con): The Home Office welcomed Barnardo's report which has been carefully considered. Of the five recommendations, family escort teams have been implemented. Of the remainder, what was recommended is largely current policy already including use of force which is subject to review. We are unable to accept the recommendation not to separate families as there will be occasions when this is unavoidable. Such decisions are scrutinised at senior level and by the Independent Family Returns Panel.

House of Lords / 26 Sep 2014 : Column <>WA490

Modern Slavery Rises in UK led by Sex, Labour Trafficking
The number of people locked in slavery in Britain rose by 22 percent last year, with online dating, social media sites and Internet job advertisements used increasingly to recruit victims, a new report showed on Tuesday. Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) identified 2,744 people, including 602 children, as potential victims of human trafficking in 2013 with more than 40 percent ending up in the sex trade and almost 30 percent forced into manual labour.

The third annual human trafficking report listed Romania as the most prevalent country of origin for victims for the third consecutive year, with more than half exploited for sex, and Poland as the most common country for labour trafficking. Although the number of victims of slavery in Britain is hard to pin down, studies have shown there has been an increase in human trafficking in recent years, prompting the government to prepare a bill to more effectively tackle slavery offences.
Read more: Alert Net, 29/09/14

Self-Harm in Immigration Detention Q2 April/May/June

'No-Deportations asked for figures on self-harm in immigration detention between April and June 2014 inclusive, under the following headings:

1. Number of individuals on formal self - harm at risk.

2. Number of Incidents of self -harm requiring medical treatment.

3. Number of deaths if any.

In Campsfield House, Brook House, Colnbrook, Dover, Dungavel, Harmondsworth, Haslar, Morton Hall, Tinsley House, Yarl's Wood IRC's, any short-term holding facilities, Cedars pre-departure accommodation and the Verne if it is operational. The data requested is in the attached. The Verne is not operational as a removal centre at present. There have been no deaths during this period.

Number of incidents of self-harm requiring medical attention.
These are the number of incidents of self-harm requiring medical attention; they do not necessarily equate to the number of detainees requiring medical attention as one individual may have received medical attention on more that one occasion.

Adjournment: Fairness or Not Fairness
If a Tribunal refuses to accede to an adjournment request, such decision could, in principle, be erroneous in law in several respects: these include a failure to take into account all material considerations; permitting immaterial considerations to intrude; denying the party concerned a fair hearing; failing to apply the correct test; and acting irrationally. In practice, in most cases the question will be whether the refusal deprived the affected party of his right to a fair hearing. Where an adjournment refusal is challenged on fairness grounds, it is important to recognise that the question for the Upper Tribunal is not whether the FtT acted reasonably. Rather, the test to be applied is that of fairness: was there any deprivation of the affected party's right to a fair hearing? See SH (Afghanistan) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2011] EWCA Civ 1284.

Turkey: Authoritarian Drift Threatens Rights
Under Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government is taking far-reaching steps to weaken the rule of law, control the media and Internet, and clamp down on critics and protestors, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.

The 38-page report, "Turkey's Human Rights Rollback: Recommendations for Reform", outlines the rollback of human rights and rule of law in Turkey, linked to mass anti-government protests in 2013 and corruption allegations that go to the very heart of the government of the ruling AKP. Human Rights Watch tracked the government's response to the recent developments and made concrete recommendations, focusing on four areas: strengthening the human rights context of the peace process with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK); reforming the criminal justice system; ending impunity for past and present abuses by state officials and for family violence against women; and ending restrictions on speech, media, Internet, and the rights to assembly and association.
Read more: Human Rights Watch, 29/09/14

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Bates) (Con): A team of seven immigration officers and one police officer were deployed on this operation. Decisions on the size of an Immigration Enforcement arrest team are made on a risk assessment and intelligence basis. On this occasion, consideration was given to the potential number of guests and indications that there were several subjects of interest who were believed to be unlawfully present.

In total there were two people arrested at the premises, one female and one male.
House of Lords / 26 Sep 2014 : Column WA499

Mustafa Fardous - Detained for 8 months Longer than was LawfulAndrew Edis, QC, sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge said:
1) The Claimant is a national of Morocco who claimed asylum in the United Kingdom on the false basis that he was from the Western Sahara and in a false name. He was granted asylum in 2002 and subsequently granted indefinite leave to remain. The Claimant was in Norway in August 2007 when he claimed asylum there, on a false basis, and was eventually expelled by Norway to the United Kingdom, arriving on 7th September 2009. He was then detained on his arrival in the United Kingdom until he was granted bail on 4th July 2011. This is a period of 22 months. In these proceedings he has claimed that this detention was unlawful throughout, but before me Mr. Ó Ceallaigh has put the case on the basis that the United Kingdom authorities were entitled to detain the Claimant in September 2009, but that detention became unlawful at some point which I am invited to determine.

51) In my judgment that Detention Review in November 2010 marks the point at which the detention of the Claimant ceased to be lawful under Hardial Singh principles. It is agreed that quantum will be decided after hearing further argument in the light of my decision, if it cannot be agreed. I have held that 8 months of the 22 months of detention was unlawful.
http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2014/3061.html

No Place to go - Unnecessary Delays in Granting Bail
Bail for Immigration Detainees (BID) has been carrying out research this year to identify precisely where delays in the Section 4(1)(c) application process take place, how long the delays are, and why they are occurring. We have already shared our interim findings with the Home Office. Our final research report is published today, 'No place to go: delays in Home Office provision of Section 4(1)(c) bail accommodation'.

Key findings include:
The average (mean) total time taken by the Home Office to conclude the Section 4 (1)(c ) application process from application to grant letter where a dispersal bail address was provided was 103 days (over 14 weeks), with a range of 5 to 503 days (1 to 71 weeks).  Where Initial Accommodation was granted as bail accommodation, the Home Office took on average 9 days (range 1-88 days) to make the grant.

For the cases in our study, the Home Office took on average 46 days (more than 6 weeks) simply to acknowledge an application for a bail address and decide what type of accommodation they will provide, even before any request is made to contractors for this accommodation.

After that, accommodation providers (G4S, Serco and Clearel) with COMPASS contracts to provide bail accommodation are taking on average over 3 weeks to give a bail address to the Home Office. Although in 66% of the cases we studied COMPASS contractors sourced a bail address within 7 days, in the other 34% of the cases studied there were often significant delays (30 days, 84 days, 99 days). The contractual requirement is for accommodation providers to deliver a dispersal address within 9 working days.

Download the full report below
http://www.biduk.org/download.php?id=306

FP )Angola CG - [Ceases to be country guidance]

MB (Cabinda risk) Angola v. Secretary of State for the Home Department

19. In the circumstances of this appeal I am satisfied that the proper course is to adjourn the hearing of this appeal to permit further submissions to be made in relation to the material that was before the Judge, and to which the parties did not refer to in the course of the submissions they did make. Given that neither party seeks to disturb the findings of fact made by the Judge, and set out above in paragraphs 3 & 4, the appeal would appear to give the Upper Tribunal the opportunity to give further country guidance in relation to Angola, and specifically the risk of detention and ill treatment at the hands of the authorities for those returnees who are likely to be perceived to be Cabindan. Directions will be issued separately, and the matter listed for a case management hearing, to allow that opportunity to be explored further.

1. FP (Return – Cabinda – Non-Luandan) Angola CG [2003] UKIAT 00204 no longer provides an accurate assessment of country conditions. It ceases to be country guidance.

2. There is significant evidence of human rights abuses, including within Cabinda and affecting Cabindans, problems of arbitrary arrest and detention, ill-treatment in detention, poor prison conditions, restrictions on freedom of expression, government action against protest and limitations in the legal system and security laws. However, these problems do not render all those returning to Angola or Cabinda to be at risk of serious harm, whether or not they are Cabindans.

3. Unless there exists a situation in which there is generalised violence or armed conflict at a very high level (which is not the case here) in order to establish a real risk of harm, an individual has to establish that, by reason of circumstances as they relate to him, there is a reasonable likelihood he will come into contact with the authorities in a way that will result in his detention.

4. The Angolan authorities do not equate being a Cabindan with being a member of or supporter of the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC).

5. The evidence fails to establish that FLEC currently operates at a level such as to represent a real threat to the Angolan authorities although they are keen to take measures to ensure that there is no resurgence of its activities. Nor does the evidence establish that FLEC reflects the views and aspirations of a majority of Cabindans, notwithstanding the fact that the Cabindan sense of social identity remains very strong and separation from Angola remains an aspiration shared by many. The Angolan authorities readily understand the distinction between FLEC membership or support and Cabindan self-assertion.

6. There is clear evidence of normal security checks at airports, including Luanda airport on arrival. Those checks are likely to be thorough and directed towards establishing the identity of the person entering the country.

7. There are no obstacles in a returnee to Luanda airport making an onward journey to Cabinda. The finding in FP that travel to Cabinda from Luanda is excluded as a practical possibility is no longer correct.

8. Language is a distinctive method of identification but identification as a Cabindan is not sufficient to establish a real risk.

9. A person of Cabindan origin returning to Angola will not in general be at real risk of illtreatment by reason of his or her Cabindan origin. Such a person is reasonably likely to be detained (with the accompanying risk of ill-treatment) only if he or she has a history of active involvement with FLEC (or one of its factions, such as FLEC-PM or FLEC-FAC). Excluded from those at risk are individuals formerly associated with the pro-government FLEC-Renewal (FLEC-Renovada) or Antonio Bembe.

10. A person's Cabindan origin will not, in general, preclude him from living or working in Luanda or some other part of Angola.

United Kingdom: Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber)/8 September 2014
http://www.refworld.org/docid/542baad713.html