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Asylum Matters Update: 17th October 2023

By on 17th October 2023 in Activism & Campaigning, Policy & Research, Resource
  1. Advocacy and campaigning initiatives

Communities Not Camps 

People who were removed from the Bibby Stockholm barge following the discovery of legionella have spoken of their fear after being told they will have to return to the facility as early as this week. 

The Mayor of Portland has launched a new legal challenge against Dorset Council’s determination that it cannot take enforcement action against the Home Office on the site, after permission to proceed in a judicial review against the Home Office on planning grounds was denied. Meanwhile, a judicial review on planning at the ex-MoD sites of Wethersfield and Scampton remains pending. 

The Home Office has refused to release the cost of the barge, while inews has reported contract documents indicate it has cost nearly £300,000 a week whilst empty. Corporate Watch has released further information about costs. 

The Home Office has also refused to commit to a date for the arrival of people at RAF Scampton. This comes amidst reports that the local council’s ‘stop notice’ had been ignored by the Government with work continuing on the site; that the camp would be shut ‘as quickly as possible’ if Labour is in power after the next election; and that several arrests have been made amid protests at the site.

In Wales, the hotel earmarked for asylum accommodation in Llanelli is reopening to the public after the Home Office dropped its plans, following sustained protest and incidents of disorder outside the site. 

Take action! 

Asylum profiteering: Refugee Action’s Most Wanted Campaign 

Refugee Action has launched its ‘Most Wanted’, a campaign targeting the private contractors making vast profits from sub-par asylum accommodation, leaving people seeking asylum living in appalling conditions. The campaign’s calls include an asylum system that is not-for-profit; and that local authorities are strengthened to ensure every person seeking safety is housed in decent, community-based accommodation.  The campaign site includes a range of resources that can be downloaded, or partners can share Refugee Action’s posts on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.

Welcome Every Woman campaign 

Women For Refugee Women has launched a new campaign and video. Welcome Every Woman will press for a better, safer life for every refugee woman in the UK; and will have a particular focus on detention, decision-making and accommodation. Partners can support the campaign by signing the pledge; and sharing the video on Twitter,  Instagram and Facebook.

Praxis childcare campaign

Praxis has launched a new campaign and petition calling for the Government to improve access to early years education and childcare to include all families, regardless of their immigration status. The campaign is co-produced by the No Recourse to Public Funds Action Group, and wants to ensure that parents affected by NRPF are not excluded from the offer of 30 hours free childcare for working parents of young children, as set out in the campaign briefing.  You can share campaign content on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and download images for their own social media posts.   

  1. Government and parliamentary updates

Refugee Homelessness

As increased evictions from asylum accommodation continue across the country, many charities are warning of the impact on refugees as we enter the winter months. This is also having a significant impact on local authorities, especially as the  UK Government has stated it will not provide funding to mitigate the impact. Glasgow City Council has spoken out about the homelessness crisis this will create.

Rwanda Supreme Court hearing

The hearing continues at the Supreme Court on the legality of the UK Government’s policy. The challenge was brought by the Home Office, after the Court of Appeal ruled in June that the policy was unlawful. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer made clear in an interview that, if elected, a Labour Government would scrap the Rwanda scheme in its entirety, whatever the outcome of the court hearing. 

Failure to travel policy – Bibby Stockholm

The Home Office has produced a specific failure to travel policy for the Bibby Stockholm barge. Commentary by Free Movement here. 

Debate on safe asylum routes for Afghan refugees

Barry Gardiner MP has secured a Westminster Hall Debate on Tuesday 17 October 4-4.30pm on safe asylum routes for Afghan refugees. You can watch the debate live here. 

 

  1. Reports and research

Future migration trends

Migration Observatory has published new research, which predicts that net migration will fall in the coming years.  Using a model developed together with the London Schools of Economics, the research concludes that net migration will fall to around 250,000 to 350,000 people a year, close to the pre-Bexit level.

NAO on Homes for Ukraine

The National Audit Office has published its investigation into Homes for Ukraine. The independent public spending watchdog finds that the scheme has supported 131,000 Ukrainians arriving into the UK since March 2022 with £2.1bn in UK Government funding. The report states there is a risk of homelessness as sponsorships end, and that 4,890 households have been assessed by their local authority as being at risk of homelessness or being homeless. However, NAO notes this is likely to understate the true picture, as around one third of local authorities are not providing homelessness data to DLUHC.

 

  1. Resources, events, jobs and training 

Sector statement for Local Authorities on the Illegal Migration Act  

KIND UK has co-ordinated a joint statement outlining the impact of the new Act and ways local authorities can challenge, prepare for and mitigate this. 

Migrants Organise Guide: challenging notice to move to the Bibby Stockholm

This guide is aimed at individuals, support workers and caseworkers who wish to challenge notices for individuals to move to the Bibby Stockholm barge, in light of Home Office plans to move people back to the facility. Access and download here.

JCWI information session on visa fees increase

On 1 November at 17:30, JCWI is holding a free, confidential information session on the recent visa fees increase for people who want to learn more about fee waivers, which are for people making certain immigration applications who cannot afford the fees.  You can sign up here. 

United Impact film

United Impact, the NRPF lived experience group supported by Project 17, is holding a screening of its new film on Wednesday 18 October at 10.30am.  ‘A Voice for The Voiceless-Echoes of Our Pain’ looks at the negative effects of the NRPF policy on the lives of migrant families. The screening will take place on Zoom and you can register here. 

Jobs

  1. What we’re reading/watching/listening to
  • Some great podcasts, including IMIX’s Un/Documented podcast It takes a community; and Refugee Action’s The Experts by Experience podcasts on poetry.  Also be sure not to miss the brilliant previous episode on asylum dispersal policy.
  • For Black History Month, this piece on saluting some of Scotland’s sisters; and this Big Issue piece on some of the women and men who have helped shape modern Britain.
  • This Guardian Long Read on the inside story of the Rwanda deportation plan.
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