A joint statement on the withdrawal of asylum support for in-country applicants

Tuesday 7th January 2003

The Refugee Council, Shelter, Amnesty International UK, Asylum Rights Campaign, CRISIS, JCORE, the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), Maternity Alliance, Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, Migrant Helpline, Oxfam, Refugee Action and Refugee Arrivals Project are some of the leading organisations in the human rights, refugee and homelessness sectors. We work with and on behalf of some of the most vulnerable people in society.

From our different but complementary perspectives, we have been at the forefront of attempts to reform and improve the UK's asylum support system. This statement expresses our deep concern with the Government's decision to deprive, from 8th January 2003, destitute in-country asylum applicants of the right to food and shelter.

A shared belief

As key stakeholders we share a belief that any system of support for asylum seekers must be fair to asylum seekers themselves and to the communities in which they live.

In recent years, however, asylum policy developments have caused us alarm, both as civil society organisations and service providers. The focus on deterrence of asylum seekers has seen a more punitive philosophy take hold of government policy. While this has had no long-term effect in reducing numbers of asylum applications, it has had a detrimental effect on the well-being of asylum seekers, on community relations and has stretched frontline services to breaking point.

We do not believe that everyone claiming asylum in the UK qualifies for protection under international or humanitarian law. But we do believe all asylum applicants should have their cases considered fairly and be treated with dignity while they wait for their cases to be decided. If we believe in the concept of asylum then we must not penalise people seeking its protection.

Our concerns with the new measure

The Government has stated that section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 is a carefully targeted and necessary measure to deal with 'unfounded' claims. As organisations fighting homelessness and working to reform the asylum system we consider its implementation to be a retrograde step.

The new measure will affect ALL in-country applicants - who represent two thirds of all those applying for asylum - not just the small minority Government considers to be abusing the system. We fear that unless they are able to provide Home Office officials with independent or physical evidence of their date and method of arrival, in-country asylum applicants will be denied food or shelter, whether or not they have valid reasons for not applying for asylum at a port of entry. This is unreasonable.

It is clear from Government figures, as well as our own experiences, that refugees are often unable to claim asylum at ports of entry. The latest official figures reveal that 65 per cent of all successful claims (including Exceptional Leave to Remain) are made by in-country applicants. In 1996, the Social Security Advisory Committee - the main UK advisory body on Social Security - gave a number of reasons for why people apply in-country. These included lack of knowledge of the UK asylum process, language difficulties, trauma and fear of officialdom.

The concerns we share are in part informed by the collective experiences of our organisations in 1996, when Michael Howard and Peter Lilley introduced a similar measure. Then, we witnessed chaos, hardship and despair that damaged the credibility of the asylum system in the eyes of many, including the public. We came across people who would walk for miles to get a hot meal or for whom all we could do was offer plastic sheeting for shelter. Although voluntary organisations mobilised to do the best they could, the truth is that only the intervention of the courts prevented a greater tragedy.

But we are also concerned that lessons learnt much more recently are also in danger of being forgotten. We had hoped that the Government had learned through the bitter failure of the voucher system that a system of support that is socially divisive will fail. We now fear this may not be the case.

The National Asylum Support System is only available to people who can show that they would otherwise be destitute. People who lose this support through the operation of Section 55 have nothing else to turn to. The measure will cause homelessness and could force many asylum applicants onto the streets, undermining Government strategies tackling rough sleeping, promoting social cohesion and reducing exclusion. Others may be forced to stay with friends and relatives in the refugee community, causing overcrowding and undermining the Government's dispersal policy.

Our experiences in 1996, and of working with asylum seekers daily, also lead us to conclude that it is not just young healthy adults who may be deprived of food and shelter. Many of those likely to be affected, including survivors of torture, will be severely traumatised, have medical problems or have other special needs. Although we find it difficult to countenance any UK Government acting in such a way, we are extremely alarmed to hear from Home Office officials that even some categories of pregnant women will be denied food and shelter.

The Government must think again

Between us, we have a formidable range and depth of expertise and experience. In the cold winter weeks ahead, many of our organisations will have to put these skills to use in order to deal with the consequences of this new measure. Some of our organisations will provide advice, others basic living needs. But all of us are very clear that whatever we do will be painfully inadequate. We cannot - should not - be expected to provide food and shelter to refugees waiting for the Government to recognise their asylum claims. That is a national responsibility that must not be shirked.

Withdrawing food and shelter from in-country asylum applicants will at a stroke show that nothing has been learnt from two of the biggest public policy failures in recent years - the voucher system and the implementation of a similar measure in 1996. We call on the Government to consider the concerns raised in this statement, to think again and work with us in establishing a fair and sustainable system of asylum support.

For further information contact

Amnesty International UK (Neil Durkin, 020 7814 6241)

Crisis (Virindira Bains, 020 7426 3832)

Jewish Council for Racial Equality (Edie Friedman, 020 8455 0896)

Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (Tauhid Pasha, 020 7251 8708)

Maternity Alliance (Jenny McLeish, 020 7490 7630 ext 127)

Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture (Andrew Hogg, 020 7813 3445)

Migrant Helpline (Carmen Kimble, 01304 218 754) Oxfam (Press Office, 01865 312498 )

Refugee Action (Leigh Daynes, 020 7654 7707)

Refugee Arrivals Project (Anwar Mohammed, 020 8607 6944)

Refugee Council (Hayley Booth, 020 7820 3044)

Shelter (Steve Ballinger, 020 7505 2051)

The views expressed in this statement are shared by the participating organisations. However, individual organisations reserve the right to adapt or develop their views in line with their organisational policy or specialist knowledge.

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