Category Archives: Immigration and asylum

UK plans to send thousands of asylum seekers to Rwanda, says Boris Johnson – UK politics live

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Latest updates: opposition parties denounce plan as ‘shameful’ and ‘evil’; home secretary Priti Patel in Kigali today to unveil more details

Simon Hart, the Welsh secretary, made a rare appearance on the morning broadcast round earlier today. He said the plan to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda would mark a “humane step forward”. He told Sky News:

We have to deal with this problem. We have a very good relationship with Rwanda: it’s an up-and-coming economy, it has got a very good record with migrants in this particular issue.

And it’s an arrangement which I think suits both countries very well and provides the best opportunities for economic migrants, for those who have been in the forefront of this particular appalling problem for so long now.

We’ve put forward proposals to make it more difficult for smuggler gangs to advertise online on social media, which is partly how they do it.

We think there should be safe and legal routes that people need for family reunions and so on, so that they don’t have to arrive through these illegal routes in order to make their asylum claims.

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Tens of thousands of asylum seekers could be sent to Rwanda, says Johnson

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PM insists east African country is safe and scheme will prove ‘very considerable deterrent’

Tens of thousands of unauthorised migrants who seek sanctuary in the UK will be flown more than 4,000 miles to Rwanda under a new set of immigration policies, Boris Johnson has said.

The prime minister insisted at a press conference that the African state, criticised last year by the UK for its human rights record, was one of the safest countries in the world. He also announced that the Royal Navy would take over patrolling the Channel to intercept small boats from France.

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UK plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda sparks fierce criticism

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Politicians, charities and rights groups condemn plans as ill-conceived, inhumane and evil

Politicians have described Priti Patel’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda as “evil” and “inhumane”, amid fierce criticism from refugee charities, which have said the move is ill-conceived.

The government is on Thursday expected to announce multimillion-pound plans for asylum seekers who cross the Channel in small boats to be flown for processing to Rwanda.

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Using Windrush to justify UK visa rule for Ukrainian refugees baffles experts

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Analysis: Windrush scandal wrongly categorised people as illegal immigrants, while most Ukrainian refugees have documentation

Why has Britain, unlike every other country in Europe, insisted on requiring all Ukrainian refugees to obtain visas before travelling here?

In justifying the decision, Priti Patel has again pointed to the Windrush scandal as a key factor in the government’s refusal to waive visas for people fleeing Ukraine. But it is a reasoning that has left immigration experts baffled.

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Priti Patel’s immigration bill suffers multiple defeats in Lords

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Peers find fault with many aspects of nationality and borders bill, in particular proposal to divide refugees into classes

Priti Patel’s nationality and borders bill has been ripped apart for a second time by the House of Lords as the government suffered more than 10 defeats over controversial proposals to tighten immigration rules.

Peers supported proposals to ensure that the bill complied with the 1951 Refugee Convention and challenged the government’s plan to redefine refugees into two classes based on how they arrived in the UK.

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Ukraine refugees trying to get UK visas facing ‘Kafkaesque’ system, MPs told

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Shadow home secretary says tens of thousands of desperate people still stuck in system

The shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, has said refugees in Ukraine are facing “Kafkaesque” bureaucracy as they try to navigate Home Office visa requirements.

Cooper had tabled an urgent question over the government’s two visa schemes, with MPs from both sides of the house rounding on the government.

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Russian oligarchs on UK sanctions list were granted ‘golden visas’

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Eight unnamed individuals were awarded right to live in Britain under controversial investor visa scheme

Eight Russian oligarchs on the UK sanctions list over their links to Vladimir Putin were granted “golden visas” to live in Britain.

The eight individuals, who Boris Johnson described as having “the blood of the Ukrainian people on their hands”, were granted the right to live in the UK after promising to invest at least £2m under the controversial tier 1 investor visa scheme.

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‘False hope’: refugee charity attacks UK’s Homes for Ukraine scheme

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Positive Action in Housing says visas not being granted and refugees seeking sponsors are putting themselves in danger

A charity that is helping Ukrainian refugees trying to come to the UK has said no visas have been granted to those it is supporting, nearly a fortnight after a government scheme was launched.

The head of Positive Action in Housing, Robina Qureshi, said the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme had given people “false hope” and amounted to a “gimmick”.

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UK set to criminalise illicit refugee crossings after ministers avoid Commons rebellion

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Government wins string of votes to restore elements of controversial borders and nationality bill removed by Lords

The UK appears set to criminalise illicit refugee crossings and could ship asylum seekers for processing in other countries after ministers easily saw off a potential rebellion in the Commons over the controversial borders and nationality bill.

Despite a number of Conservative backbenchers expressing concerns about aspects of the bill, the government convincingly won a string of votes to restore elements changed in the House of Lords, including the idea of Australian-style third country processing.

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Ukrainian refugees with UK relatives frustrated by Home Office visa delays

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People who have applied to join relatives in the UK face long waits for visa approvals

Ukrainian refugees waiting to travel to join relatives in Britain have voiced frustration at the length of time the Home Office is taking to process UK visas, despite government promises to streamline the system.

As the Homes for Ukraine scheme launched on Friday, allowing UK residents to sponsor visas for non-family members, Ukrainians who had already applied to join relatives in Britain under an earlier scheme expressed dismay at the long waits for visa approvals.

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Refugee website crashes as 89,000 Britons rush to take in Ukrainians

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About 10,000 people an hour signing up to offer homes to war-hit families and individuals, says minister

Almost 89,000 people have offered homes to Ukrainian refugees in the first hours of a government scheme that allows families and individuals to bring them to the UK.

The website for registering interest in the scheme crashed for a short while because of the numbers offering homes. By 9am on Tuesday, 88,712 had joined the scheme. The Foreign Office minister, James Cleverly, said “10,000 people every hour” were signing up.

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Labour calls UK’s homes for Ukraine plan a ‘DIY asylum scheme’

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Criticism follows announcement that UK householders will have to name refugees they wish to sponsor

Michael Gove’s plan to permit UK householders to shelter Ukrainians seeking to escape the Russian war machine has been compared to a “DIY asylum scheme” after it was announced that people would have to name the refugees they wish to sponsor.

The communities secretary was criticised after setting out details of the homes for Ukraine scheme in the Commons on Monday, after complaints about the government’s slow response to the worst humanitarian disaster in Europe for decades.

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UK politics live: Boris Johnson says government will keep tightening ‘economic vice around Putin regime’

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Latest updates: prime minister suggests further sanctions to come in future

Chelsea FC will still be allowed to play matches despite its owner, Roman Abramovich, being sanctioned, the government says. It explains:

Given the significant impact that today’s sanctions would have on Chelsea football club and the potential knock on effects of this, the government has this morning published a licence which authorises a number of football-related activities to continue at Chelsea. This includes permissions for the club to continue playing matches and other football related activity which will in turn protect the Premier League, the wider football pyramid, loyal fans and other clubs. This licence will only allow certain explicitly named actions to ensure the designated individual is not able to circumvent UK sanctions. The licence will be kept under constant review and we will work closely with the football authorities.

There can be no safe havens for those who have supported Putin’s vicious assault on Ukraine.

Today’s sanctions are the latest step in the UK’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian people. We will be ruthless in pursuing those who enable the killing of civilians, destruction of hospitals and illegal occupation of sovereign allies.

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UK ministers considering climbdown on Ukraine visa restrictions

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Change would mean Ukrainians with temporary visas would be able to bring their relatives to Britain

Ministers are considering a climbdown to allow Ukrainians with temporary visas to bring relatives to the UK after Ukraine’s ambassador called for an easing of restrictions.

Amid scenes of chaos and despair at a visa application centre in Poland, government insiders said Ukrainians in the UK on work and student visas might also be allowed to bring their relatives to the UK.

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Priti Patel under fire over chaotic Ukrainian refugee policy

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Home Office sources contradict earlier government denials that third way to enter Britain may be introduced

Priti Patel has been accused of presiding over chaos after Ukrainian refugees arriving in Calais were greeted by posters telling them to get their UK visas in Paris or Brussels, while her pledge to expand the visa scheme was contradicted by Downing Street.

On a day of confusion and uncertainty for Ukrainian refugees making the 1,400-mile journey to Britain, the home secretary admitted that she has not yet set up a visa application centre (VAC) near the French port of Calais where refugees have gathered.

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Experts raise doubts over plan for Royal Navy to control Channel crossings

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Exclusive: Critical defence select committee report to come amid growing Tory unease over No 10’s plan

The credibility of the government’s plan to put the Royal Navy in charge of coordinating efforts to control small boats in the Channel is expected to be questioned by an influential parliamentary committee.

A report by the defence select committee, to be delivered shortly, will raise doubts over whether plans to put the Royal Navy in charge have been rigorously tested.

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Home Office to pay UK resident £5,750 for 10-hour Calais detention

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Border official insisted Slovakian national was using an alias after Home Office misspelled name

The Home Office has agreed to pay nearly £6,000 in a settlement to an EU citizen it detained at the border in a post-Brexit crackdown on Europeans entering the country last year.

Miro Matos, a Slovakian who has lived in the UK for 18 years, was so furious at his treatment in Calais that he sued after officials detained him for 10 hours alleging he was using a false name and had not declared a driving offence when he applied for EU settled status.

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As 1.3 million people flee, Ukraine’s refugee crisis is only just beginning

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Analysis: despite the EU’s solidarity in helping those escaping war, aid agencies are overwhelmed with many people stuck at borders

Just over a week after Russian rockets first began to slam into Ukraine, more than 1.3 million people have fled over the borders of neighbouring European countries into a frightening and uncertain future. What we are witnessing, the United Nations has warned, is the largest refugee crisis in a century.

All week, the world has watched families fighting to board trains in chaotic crowds, fathers kissing their children goodbye through car windows, and seen the shock and exhaustion on the faces of those who have made it to safety.

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Property of Russian elites could be handed to Ukrainian refugees, says Raab

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Deputy PM defends response to invasion after criticism the government has acted too slowly over sanctions

Russian elites could have their property seized and handed over to Ukrainian refugees, the deputy prime minister has suggested.

Dominic Raab made the remarks as he defended the UK’s response to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and the prime minister, Boris Johnson, called for an emergency UN summit after a Russian attack on a nuclear power station in Ukraine.

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Ukrainians want to stay near home, claims Raab, amid UK visa criticism

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Deputy prime minister says those that leave ‘want to be as close to their home country as possible’

• Russia-Ukraine crisis: live news

The UK’s deputy prime minister has suggested Ukrainians would prefer to flee to countries nearer to home amid criticism that the Britain’s support for refugees is “heartless” and pressure to offer more help from Conservative MPs.

Under plans set out on Sunday evening, Ukrainian nationals settled in the UK will be able to bring their “immediate family members” to join them, which applies only to spouses, unmarried partners of at least two years, parents or their children if one is under 18, or adult relatives who are also carers.

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