Our immigration system is failing on nearly every front
The House – 08 December 2022
A successful immigration policy needs to be based on secure borders.
We need a practical and sustainable procedure for bringing people to the United Kingdom whose skills are needed or to unite with settled families. We need safe and legal routes to bring people here who are genuinely escaping danger or persecution and have a legitimate claim to a secure haven in the UK rather than another destination. We need an efficient and fair way for processing the claims of applicants and removing those who have not reached the threshold, and an effectively functioning department of government to operate it all with pragmatism and compassion.
Unfortunately, on virtually all fronts our immigration system is failing; an unfortunate state of play acknowledged even by successive home secretaries. So, what’s to be done? Any solution needs to be multi-faceted.
If the ill-fated Rwanda scheme is to act as a proper deterrent, then literally planes have got to get off the ground
The whole vile trafficking trade could of course be stopped overnight if the French authorities agreed to intercept the boats at sea and bring passengers back to the French beaches after an expensive but abortive round trip. Alternatively, they could detain the migrant groups intercepted (largely due to yet more British subsidies of French police) heading for the beaches and check their status rather than confiscating an easily replaced boat and setting them free to try their luck again the following night. But why would they do that?
Surely it is not in French interests for the north French coast to be a magnet for “jungle” type camps simply because people think they can get into the UK. But as the Home Affairs Select Committee has proposed, and discussions with certain French politicians have revealed, there is a deal to be done. Intercepted migrants could be taken to the reception centres which UK taxpayers are funding and where they have links with the UK and in some cases could be allowed to apply for asylum here. The condition though must be that the French authorities detain and deport those who are not reasonably accepted rather than set them free and back into the arms of the people traffickers.
Alongside that we need to re-establish proper safe and legal routes so those taking to the boats do have an option if they are genuine asylum seekers, something the French criticise us for. I have called for a Dubs Two scheme which focuses on rescuing some of the most vulnerable unaccompanied children and a generous family reunion scheme for those with close relatives legally resident in the UK.
Currently such routes are only available to those who qualify through the explicit and generous Afghan, Syrian, Hong Kong and Ukrainian schemes and a handful of others through UNHCR. Having viable alternatives need not mean opening our doors to tens of thousands more people but would certainly mean we could be much tougher on enforcement against a much larger cohort of people who are really economic migrants gaming our system. Safe and legal routes are no good for those who do not have a legitimate and legal claim to be granted leave to stay in the UK.
We need a fast-track system for those still coming from agreed safe countries with arrangements in place to return them as swiftly as possible. Clearly Albanians fit in to this category and we have arrangements with the Albanian government to share intelligence on processing claims and accepting returns.
The latest surge in those identifying as victims of modern-day slavery to legitimise a clandestine arrival clearly needs legislation change, but it does not anyway confer automatic right to residency. Arguably people are better protected by their own government at home, close to friend and fa…
[21:50, 08/12/2022] Rod - Visa / IT: ‘I sell queue spots at Home Affairs for a living’
3 December 2022 iol
Home Affairs queues are notoriously long with many people getting turned away at the end of the day without getting help or even stepping into the premises.
Nathi, a 24-year-old from the south of Durban, has made it his livelihood to make the people’s trip to these offices as convenient and stress-free as possible....at a price.
The young man wakes up just after midnight and carries 10 chairs to the nearest Home Affairs branch and waits for individuals he can sell the spots to.
“I don’t usually get up at the same time, so occasionally there is a short line when I arrive. I charge R100 for each spot,” he says.
He claims that the security guards know him and do not harass him, but can ask him for hush money whenever they feel like it.
On a good day, Nathi says he can get R800, but this depends on several factors such as the weather, the person’s patience or lack thereof, and how early he wakes up.
Without a higher education, he sees his options as bleak and this job the only one he can do at the moment. Nathi lives in his friend’s tuckshop which is near the home affairs offices.
“People can be incredibly rude. They view me as inferior to the muck on their shoes because I perform this kind of work. I have approached folks who treated me like just another tsotsi, and received slaps and punches as a result.”
Story continues below Advertisement
Nathi believes he may earn between R3 800 and R4 500 per month. He spends R200 on accommodation, R1 500 on groceries, and R2 000 per month to send money back home for his 3-year-old child.
The young man says that even though this is a difficult job, he is proud that he can, at the very least, provide for himself and his son and does not have to rely on anyone else.
Earlier this year, the Department of Home Affairs introduced the branch appointment booking system. This is a system that allows clients to make electronic bookings for selected services at selected branches.
Story continues below Advertisement
“Citizens are encouraged to make use of the online booking system because in the near future, selected Home Affairs offices will process smart ID and passport applications only for clients who have booked an appointment through the branch appointment system.
“Pre-booked clients will be serviced at dedicated counters. It’s quick and easy.”
Despite this, lines are extremely long in most branches, and Nathi believes people like him will continue to make a living through these means.
www.samigration.com