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Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: IDRC
ISBN: 9780215060754
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 74
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Book Description
The Committee examines the work of the UK Border Agency (UKBA) on a three monthly basis. Following the abolition of the Agency it will continue to monitor the Home Office UK Visa and Immigration service on a three monthly basis. The Committee found a further backlog of 190,000 cases in the temporary and permanent migration pool that were never revealed to the Committee before. The total figure for the backlog has reached over half a million. The Committee feels it is unacceptable that new backlogs are revealed in Committee evidence sessions. The UK Border Agency had a troubled history. Many of its problems predate the establishment of the Agency. Ministers must now explain how those problems will not outlive its demise. To see a change in the culture in the new organisational structure and management it must be complemented by the ability for a wholesale restructuring of the employees of the organisation. The newly appointed Directors General must have the ability and resources necessary to implement this change. The Home Office should outline exactly how they propose to bring about this change in culture. In evidence the Committee were told the immigration service would never be fixed. This surprised the Committee since reducing immigration is a priority of this Government. What the immigration service needs desperately is stability, the resources necessary to clear the backlogs and a wholesale change in culture
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: IDRC
ISBN: 9780215060754
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 74
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Book Description
The Committee examines the work of the UK Border Agency (UKBA) on a three monthly basis. Following the abolition of the Agency it will continue to monitor the Home Office UK Visa and Immigration service on a three monthly basis. The Committee found a further backlog of 190,000 cases in the temporary and permanent migration pool that were never revealed to the Committee before. The total figure for the backlog has reached over half a million. The Committee feels it is unacceptable that new backlogs are revealed in Committee evidence sessions. The UK Border Agency had a troubled history. Many of its problems predate the establishment of the Agency. Ministers must now explain how those problems will not outlive its demise. To see a change in the culture in the new organisational structure and management it must be complemented by the ability for a wholesale restructuring of the employees of the organisation. The newly appointed Directors General must have the ability and resources necessary to implement this change. The Home Office should outline exactly how they propose to bring about this change in culture. In evidence the Committee were told the immigration service would never be fixed. This surprised the Committee since reducing immigration is a priority of this Government. What the immigration service needs desperately is stability, the resources necessary to clear the backlogs and a wholesale change in culture
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215063489
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 94
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Book Description
The Border Agency backlogs, by the time it was wound up, had fallen to 432,000. However, most of the 70,400 reduction was achieved by simply loading pending cases onto the computer, and in some categories-such as those applying for further leave to remain on the basis of marriage or civil partnership-the backlog had actually grown. The Committee has no objection in principle to the introduction of a charge for access to the National Health Service for those who are in the UK only temporarily. However it expresses concerns about the possible application of the scheme to vulnerable people who have been trafficked into the country and recommends that the Government should pilot an alternative option for visa applicants to take out private health insurance instead. This has been a chaotic summer for immigration policy. First we had the controversial AdVans which were rightly ridiculed, and then it was revealed that Capita had botched the contract to clear the migration refusal pool by asking British citizens to leave their own country. Finally we saw a u-turn on visa bonds, however the uncertainty has already done damage. A more effective and less menacing message would be that the Government is willing and able to support those who are here illegally to return home if they want to. Tough enforcement action should be taken against those who are determined to remain here illegally, but for the target audience of potential voluntary returners, the effectiveness of the carrot is potentially undermined by the ostentatious brandishing of the stick
Author: John Vine
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780108511363
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 88
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Book Description
The Chief Inspector was commissioned by the Home Secretary to investigate and report on the level of checks operated at ports of entry to the UK. This followed the disclosure that some checks may have been suspended without the approval of ministers and the subsequent suspension of the then Head of Border Force. The investigation focused particularly on: the Home Office Warnings Index (WI) - used to ascertain whether passengers are of interest to the government agencies; Secure ID - checks passengers' fingerprints at immigration controls against those provided in the visa application process; and the risk-based measures that formed part of the level 2 pilot - where it was no longer routine to open the biometric chip within EEA passports or perform WI checks of EEA children travelling in obvious family or school groups. The number of occasions when checks were suspended depended on the volume of passengers, the level of risk they presented, staff available and the infrastructure of the ports. Overall, the Chief Inspector found poor communication, poor managerial oversight and a lack of clarity about roles and responsibilities.There was no single framework setting out all potential border security checks, which of these could be suspended, in what circumstances and the level of authority required at Agency or Ministerial level to do so. The Agency now has a stronger grip on checks, but a new framework of security checks is urgently needed, unambiguously specifying checks that must always be carried out and those where there is discretion to suspend.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215070425
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 82
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Book Description
The numbers coming from Bulgaria and Romania since the end of transitional controls appear rather more a trickle than a flood. The Government's failure to commission an estimate of these numbers has led to unnecessary anti-immigrant. It is essential that for future enlargement of the EU the Government commission research on the impact of migration to the UK. The Migration Advisory Committee should be tasked by the Government to provide an estimate of the numbers arriving in our country. The Government must also not sell citizenship to the highest bidder. Those who seek to acquire British citizenship should be fit and proper. The Warnings Index and our borders controls are still not fit for purpose and there is a real possibility that dangerous criminals have been able to enter the UK without the authorities knowing. The verdict in the Baksim Bushati case described UK's defences to illegal immigration to be "leaking like a sieve" and Border Force as "powerless" and as "hopelessly undermanned". The Migration Refusal Pool also remains a concern. Capita have found over 34,000 cases where the person has left the UK. Apart from the fact that we have a system where the Home Office cannot know where over 30,000 people are, we then pay a private company, Capita, to clarify that they have left. Capita appear to get paid for just finding out they aren't here, not actively having to do anything to remove them. This work could have been undertaken by the Home Office directly
Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215080939
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 60
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Book Description
In 1998, the previous government abolished exit checks, paper-based embarkation records of passengers departing from the UK, because they were too resource intensive. Those universal exit checks were replaced by an intelligence-led approach, using CCTV and greater liaison between border agencies, port operators and transport carriers. This approach was subsequently superseded by the e-Borders programme, announced in February2005. The e-Borders programme has stalled and was "terminated" in March 2014 and that the Home Office would bereplacing individual systems, such as the Warnings Index and Semaphore, separately. At the moment, data for air passengers travelling in and out of the UK is sourced from carrier lists, known as Advanced Passenger Information (API). Air passengers buy tickets in advance and check in a reasonable time before departure, so API coverage is good, about 80% and increasing. Coverage is not so good for rail and ferry passengers, partly because of the ticketing systems and partly because customers can decide to travel, buy a ticket and have checked in at a time near to departure. Both the Minister and the Director General of Border Force have assured the Committee that 100% exit checks will be in place by 31st March 2015. To deliver exit checks, the Home Office needs to find a mechanism that can count all of the rail and maritime passengers as they depart the UK by the end of March. Exit checks will be carried out by the transport operators' staff, not Border Force. The Committee hope this can be delivered.
Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 0215084608
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 49
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Book Description
Calais is the closest entry point to the UK from Europe, with frequent ferry services to Dover, the Eurotunnel Shuttle service to Folkestone, and direct passenger trains to London St Pancras. About 10 million passengers and about £89 billion worth of UK trade pass through the port of Calais every year. A further 20 million passengers pass through the tunnel on Eurostar or the Shuttle. Most of the traffic is freight. Most of the passengers are British citizens on leisure trips. The growing number, and living conditions, of migrants in Calais, and the enhanced security measures brought in to counter them, have affected the residents of Calais, the reputation of the port of Calais, and the ease with which trade and traffic can pass between Britain and the Continent. The number of migrants at Calais has increased over 2014, from an estimated 1,300 in September, to about 2,500 by the end of October. The majority are from countries that have been affected by war or civil unrest. Most are men, and from Somalia, Sudan, Eritrea and Syria - in 2013 Syria overtook Afghanistan as the top country of origin of asylum-seekers in the world. Some of the migrants live in squats and small camps in the town of Calais, but most live in makeshift tents made out of plastic sheets and canvas, poorly constructed, located in empty industrial sites or woodland. The camps are not permanent and Calais is not the final destination, but a staging post for migrants wishing to enter the UK illegally. The UK cannot ignore the issues around Calais. While security in France is the responsibility of the French authorities, the UK operates juxtaposed border controls in Calais and Coquelles. These juxtaposed controls enable all border administration for entry to the UK to take place before passengers and vehicles leave France. Efficient management of queues and the ability to deliver on time are important, both to avoid disruption to carriers' timetables, and to avoid the excessive build-up of traffic on the surrounding road network. As well as ensuring the efficient and timely processing of travellers and freight, the border controls are needed to ensure the integrity of the UK border.
Author: Gina Clayton
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198747551
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 669
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Book Description
This volume examines the law and system of control which govern immigration and asylum in the UK. It begins with the historical and legal context, explains who is subject to immigration control, and describes the legal and administrative structure of the system.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215063441
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 28
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The Home Affairs Committee has criticised evidence given by both the officers subject to the disciplinary investigation and their Chief Constables. The individual officers gave evidence which the Committee found to be misleading, possibly deliberately so, and lacking in credibility. The Committee has decided to recall both Sergeant Jones and DS Hinton, next Tuesday 5th November 2013, to apologise for misleading it and has reserved the right to recall Inspector MacKaill should it be found that he too has misled the Committee. Both DS Hinton and Sgt Jones have been referred to the IPCC. The apologies given by Chief Constable Shaw (West Mercia), Sims (West Midlands) and Parker (Warwickshire) were welcomed although the decision taken by Chief Constables Parker and Sims not to redetermine whether their officers should face a misconduct panel was criticised. Mr Parker has also been criticised for seeking to correct the evidence of DS Hinton in a manner which suggested that he lacked impartiality. Assistant Chief Constable Cann (West Midlands) has been criticised for attempting to access the final report of the misconduct investigation prior to it being signed off by the IPCC. The Committee regretted an absence of leadership by all three Chief Constables at a critical time which could have, if utilised earlier, prevented reputational damage to the police service. The Committee believes that the IPCC should have carried out an independent inquiry in this case although it recognises that resource constraints which would have prevented it for completing an investigation quickly were the main factor behind the decision not to do so
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215063410
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 120
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This report is the Home Affairs Committee's response to the House's invitation of 15 July 2013, together with the Justice and European Scrutiny Committees, to submit a report by the end of October 2013 relevant to the exercise of the block opt-out of pre-Lisbon Treaty EU police and criminal justice measures, before the start of negotiations between the Government and the European Commission, Council and other EU member states on measures which the UK wishes to rejoin following exercise of the block opt-out. The Government has given notification of its intention to exercise the block opt-out. Its right to do so, and the conditions attached to the exercise of that right, are contained in Article 10 of Protocol 36 annexed to the EU Treaties. The block opt-out covers 130 EU police and criminal justice measures which had been adopted prior to 1 December 2009, the date of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. The Committee has also set out: (i) That there are many problems with the European Arrest Warrant, in its existing form, in particular that it is on a system of mutual recognition of legal systems which in reality vary significantly; (ii) The Committee welcomes and supports the Government's reform package for the arrest warrant; (iii) The Committee recommends separate votes on the arrest warrant to the rest of the opt-in package at an early stage to provide a parliamentary mandate for the Government's negotiations.; (iv) The Committee concludes that if the Government proceeds with the opt-in as proposed, it will not result in any repatriation of powers. Indeed, the increased jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice may result in a net flow of powers in the opposite direction.
Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215065926
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 78
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Book Description
We are facing an epidemic of psychoactive substances in the UK with deaths increasing by 79% in the last year. New versions of these "legal highs" are being produced at the rate of at least one a week, yet it has taking the Government a year to produce five pages of guidance on the use of alternative legislation. This slow response to the crisis may have led to more deaths. Those who sell these killer substances need to be held responsible. New laws should be enacted to put the onus on them. Especially at this time of year, young people need to take care about what substances they consume so their health and lives are not put at risk. Quick turn around mobile testing units should be utilised at festivals in order in order to facilitate the removal of potentially harmful or illegal substances from the site immediately and more specific education on psychoactive substances should be given in school and colleges. There are also currently 1.5 million people addicted to prescription drugs in the UK. The abuse of these types of substances is taking place in the shadows and its extent is still unquantified. Local GPs need to report their suspicious and collate information to illuminate this problem. Medical Royal Colleges should establish a joint working group to examine whether local health teams are effectively communicating concerns around individuals visiting multiple practices to request specific drugs.
