Migration news roundup 9 September 2024

• Stories that inspired us this week
• International news
• UK borders and migration policy
• Specific migrant groups
• Cohesion and integration

Stories that inspired us this week

Guillaume 'Junior' Atangana, a Bradford district Paralympian athlete, won a bronze in the T11 400m event at Paris 2024. He wins the first-ever Paralympic medal for the Refugee Team. (Source: Telegraph and Argus)

Sam Pordale, a 24-year-old from Afghanistan, celebrates his nomination for the Big Issue’s Changemakers award of 2024. (Source: Big Issue)  

International news

Germany’s migration commissioner has suggested the EU takes advantage of asylum facilities in Rwanda for people arriving through Belarus without authorisation. (Source: Reuters)  

The number of people attempting to cross the Channel from the UK to France is growing. Some people used the UK as a way to enter France, some were at risk of being deported, and some found life in the UK difficult. (Source: InfoMigrants)  

UK borders and migration policy

From different quarters, the government is being urged to rethink how it frames migration issues. This article argues for 'taking integration seriously again' and that in the current economic and demographic context, politicians should capitalise on the UK’s appeal to newcomers. The government has also been urged to use the language of ‘compassion and humanity’ to tackle community tensions about refugees and asylum seekers. Meanwhile, Conservative leadership candidate Kemi Badenoch accused Home Office staff of ineffective border control due to being ‘squeamish’. (Sources: the Guardian, Independent)  

At least 12 people died this week attempting to cross the Channel, after their boat suffered major damage. A new UK-Germany joint action plan to address ‘illegal’ migration focuses on tackling people smuggling gangs. (Sources: the Guardian, InfoMigrants)  

The 2023/24 annual inspection report has been published by the (interim) Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, giving an overview of inspection findings for the year and planned topics for the coming year. (Source: Home Office)  

Specific migrant groups

On asylum:   

• The government is scrapping plans for an asylum accommodation site at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, due to high costs. (Source: Home Office)  

• A research report argues that women seeking asylum who are accommodated in hotels face patterns of coercive and controlling practices that perpetuate the gender based violence from which many have fled. (Source: Women for Refugee Women)   

• The Home Office has published two updated country policy and information notes on Afghanistan leading to fears that there will be an increase in asylum refusals relating to that country. (Sources: Home Office, Free Movement)   

• This report looks at homelessness among people whose asylum application got refused, finding rough sleeping, couch hopping and generally unstable accommodation. (Source: Jesuit Refugee Service)   

Relatedly, this briefing explores housing difficulties faced by survivors of modern slavery who are awarded a positive asylum decision. It finds that councils have inconsistent approaches to considering homelessness applications for this cohort, that temporary accommodation can be unsuitable, and it can be unclear who should be providing support. (Source: Anti-Slavery International)  

Home Office data for the first half of 2024 shows that over 1,400 unaccompanied asylum seeking children who were age disputed were later found to be under 18. This data does not include the hundreds of children wrongly placed in adult asylum accommodation. (Source: The National) 

Pre-settled status of EU nationals can now be cancelled at the border if holders no longer meet or never met the requirements under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS). In other news, four Nigerian nationals have been sentenced for forging more than 2,000 marriage certificates designed to support non-EU family members stay in the UK under the EUSS. (Sources: Schengen News, Home Office)  

On international students:  

• A recent investigation documents how international students have been deceived by fraudulent recruitment agents into paying for work visa documentation for the care sector that was unnecessary or invalid. (Source: BBC)   

• This article analyses the potential effects of the fall in international students attending UK institutions beyond university income, including the effect on local economies, the national income, and the UK’s international reputation. (Source: Higher Education Policy Institute)  

Cohesion and integration

Read how Migrant Centres in London and the West Midlands have been reaching out to individuals following the far-right riots, to make sure they do not feel alone and to provide a sense of solidarity. (Source: Independent)  

Bradford is preparing for its next Intercultured Festival from 21 October. The event will celebrate Bradford’s migrant and refugee communities and unite people in this City of Sanctuary. (Source: BBC)