The UN’s refugee agency is furious about the UK’s planned asylum overhaul, with good reason. Priti Patel’s anti-illegal immigration pitch, ‘Nationality and Borders Bill’ arguably breaks international law, and will create an ‘unfair two-tier system’ as it will
penalise refugees seeking asylum in the UK, and award them with unjust penalties. In other terms, it will become illegal for an asylum seeker to seek refuge in the UK without permission.
The bill surrounds concern that asylum-seekers should seek sanctuary in the “first safe country” they arrive in – however the UNHCR have stated that this is not a requirement under international law, and the principle was not in the 1951 Refugee Convention.
Additionally, those who have been deemed to have entered the UK illegally could face a four year imprisonment, regardless of the context of what brought them here. Charities, rights groups and opposition MPs are also upset about this proposal, as it stigmatises those seeking asylum as ‘unworthy’ of holding UK citizenship.
The bill not only seeks to ‘rapidly remove’ those seeking asylum, but also aims to offer refugees only ‘temporary’ protection with limited rights. The aim of this bill is to deter illegal immigrants, however, Rossella Pagliuchi-Lor, UNHCR’s UK representative stated that there is no evidence that it would.
It is conceivable that this bill will not deter illegal immigrants, as immigration is a world-wide concept of which governments have been grappling with for decades, instead, it will merely erupt a discontent for refugees and asylum seekers and create a further lack of understanding.
Staying Awake 