Call for asylum seekers to be allowed to work at TUC conference
21 union leaders, representing over 5 million workers, signed up to the TUC and Refugee Council Let Them Work campaign for asylum seekers to be allowed to work at last week’s TUC congress.
Sheila Bearcroft, the new TUC president, said: “While they wait months and sometimes years for their cases to be decided, asylum seekers are forced to survive on benefits, when all they want to do is provide for their families and contribute to the country in which they are keen to make their home.”
Refugee Council press release:
Union leaders pledge to support TUC and Refugee Council campaign to let asylum seekers work
TUC press release: New TUC President elected in Brighton
New Statesman launches ‘No Place for Children’ campaign against the detention of children
The New Statesman magazine has launched a campaign to end the detention of children in immigration removal centres.
The New Statesman: No Place For Children
The New Statesman: Innocent voices
Voters would like to see parties tackle poverty, says new anti-poverty campaign
Political parties need to do more to tackle poverty or risk losing votes, a survey conducted by YouGov on behalf of the Get Fair anti-poverty campaign suggests.
36 percent of the 2,000 people questioned believed government intervention was vital to helping the poorest, and 51 percent said they would be more likely to vote for a party that was actively working to do this. One in five of the British population currently live in poverty.
The Refugee Council is one of the coalition members of Get Fair as part of the campaign against destitution of asylum seekers.
Visit the Get Fair website
How the story was covered in the media:
Reuters: New anti-poverty campaign gets public support
xPress Digest: Get Fair launches all-party campaign to tackle poverty
Child freed from detention centre after legal challenge
An eight year old boy has been freed from Yarl’s Wood detention centre after his solicitors began a challenge against the Home Office in the High Court. He had been detained since July 15.
The child’s lawyers are seeking a judicial review of his case, arguing his detention was unlawful under English common law and the Human Rights Act. The case could have a large impact as it would bring the legality of detaining children under examination.
The Guardian: Boy, eight, freed from detention centre after legal challenge
Alleged assault on detainee at removal centre
The Home Office is investigating a Cameroonian graduate’s allegations that he was assaulted by security guards at an immigration detention centre.
Penda Youdjeu came to Britain in 2005 after he and his father were persecuted for campaigning for greater political freedom. A doctor who later examined him wrote that his injuries “are all highly consistent with the rough handling Mr Youdjeu describes.”
The Independent: Asylum-seeker ‘assaulted by British security guards’
Terrence Higgins Trust launches resources aimed at migrant gay men
The Terrence Higgins Trust has launched a website for migrant gay men and guidelines and an audit tool for professionals who work with them to help reduce their vulnerability to HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Visit the Gay Britain website
Lib Dems pass motion supporting gay asylum seekers
A motion has been passed at the Liberal Democrat party conference in support of people who seek asylum in Britain in fear of persecution on the grounds of their sexuality.
The motion read: “Conference calls on the government to halt the deportation of people to countries where their sexual orientation or gender identification may mean that they are threatened with the risk of imprisonment, torture, or even execution."
Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Chris Huhne said “It is totally unacceptable for Britain to be deporting people to countries where they will face persecution, torture or death merely because of their sexual orientation.”
Pink News: Lib Dems back gay asylum seekers
School children pulled together to save classmate from deportation
The Independent ran a piece on Lorin Sulaiman, who is about to start university in Britain, four years after her fellow pupils at her Portsmouth school mounted a campaign to save her and her family from deportation back to Syria.
The Independent: 'My classmates came to the rescue when I was threatened with deportation'
New housing rights website for migrants
A website with advice and guidance for frontline housing advisers or new migrants on housing rights has been launched by the Housing Associations’ Charitable Trust.
Visit the website
Centre for children and their families closed
A centre set up by the Home Office as an alternative to detaining children and their families who have had their asylum claims refused has been closed. The project aimed to keep children in local schools at the same time as encouraging their families who have exhausted their asylum appeals to voluntarily return home.
The Guardian: Immigrants’ centre set up to keep children out of detention shut
EU ministers discuss common asylum policy
France, current holders of the EU presidency, has urged other EU governments to agree on a common policy for asylum seekers, arguing that the EU should offer stronger protection for refugees.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Gutierrez told ministers access to Europe as well as minimum standards for asylum seekers must be ensured. “There are more and more barriers to entry to Europe.”
“This creates a situation in which many people in search of protection have no choice but to put themselves in the hands of people-smugglers and traffickers and to cross borders in an irregular manner.”
UN News Centre: UN refugee chief urges European Union to develop common asylum system
EU Business: EU ministers in talks on asylum policy
Legal challenge to rules on Iraqi resettlement in Britain dismissed
A legal challenge on behalf of Iraqis who worked for the British military who do not currently qualify to be resettled in Britain has failed. The resettlement scheme currently only applies to people who worked for the British Government for a minimum of twelve consecutive months from January 2005, and not to anyone who worked for a company contracted by the British Government.
Lawyers argued that the rigid criteria of the current scheme meant that the British Government’s duty of care to its staff was not being met and that there should be a judicial review of the scheme.
The Times: No softening of asylum rules for the Iraqis who risked their lives
Dispersal scheme delayed
Plans to disperse unaccompanied children seeking asylum to a small number of local authorities in order to ease pressure on London and the South East could be delayed due to concerns over funding.
Community Care: Asylum-seeking children plan could face delay
