Status Now 4 All welcomes the defeat of the Government’s Rwanda Plan in the Supreme Court

19 November 2023: Status Now 4 All welcomes the defeat of the Government’s Rwanda Plan in the Supreme Court

Status Now 4 All joins all refugee and human rights organisations in welcoming the ruling of the Supreme Court that the Government’s so-called ‘Rwanda Plan’ (to remove virtually all people seeking asylum to Rwanda for ‘processing’ through the asylum system with, notably, no possibility of return to the UK) is unlawful.

It is important to note that the ruling was unanimous: five judges ruled the plan unlawful not only under the provisions of European human rights law, but also under domestic British law. Parliament must now also understand that the threat to renounce UK signatory state status to the European Convention on Human Rights, or to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998, will not fix the Rwanda plan in the way the UK Government intends, and both would bring about a significant risk to the human rights of everyone living in the UK and to the UK’s standing in international terms

We extend our deep gratitude to the legal team acting for the respondents in this matter, and all the charities and solidarity organisations which have worked with them to bring about this result.

Continue readingStatus Now 4 All welcomes the defeat of the Government’s Rwanda Plan in the Supreme Court

Status Now 4 All Campaign

This is our call:

We call upon the British and Irish States to act immediately so that all undocumented, destitute and migrant people in the legal process in both the UK and Ireland are granted Status Now, as in *Indefinite Leave to Remain. In this way every human, irrespective of their nationality or citizenship can access healthcare, housing, food and the same sources of income from the State as everyone else

Migrants organise to beat ‘hostile environment’

East Anglia Bylines: Migrants organise to beat ‘hostile environment’

The ‘hostile environment’ immigration policy has empowered one woman to volunteer for 15 years to promote justice and foster inclusion

I’ve been involved with a number of charities and grassroots community groups since 2009 – all of them working to soften the impact of the ‘hostile environment’ immigration policy. And to put a fairer system in place.

I’m also working for initiatives to educate asylum seekers on their human rights and provide them the platform to speak out. With women’s groups in particular, this is about creating communities where compassion, respect, inclusion and empowerment will enable women to reach their potential and have a say in what happens to them.

Supporting asylum seekers means amplifying their voices and campaigning on the issues that affect people seeking protection. We all work in solidarity to end the hostile environment. It is important to help asylum seekers to access advice and support, and develop their skills and confidence.

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Concerns about the use of barges, army barracks, hotels, offshoring etc etc. continued 2023

This post follows on from the initial post which became very long, but can be found here Here we update the post with reports of atrocities around the army camp accommodation and hotels, and other Home Office plans to accommodate people in new sites. These are the consequences of the hostile system that leaves people languishing without a decision for long periods of time.

See also posts regarding ‘Detention Centres‘ such as such as Hassockfield/Derwentside, and also the post regarding plans to export people seeking asylum to Rwanda 

Re: children: https://statusnow4all.org/article-39-seeks-legal-protection-for-highly-vulnerable-children-housed-in-home-office-hotels/


StatusNow4All: our campaign: ‘Indefinite Leave To Remain’ for people who are undocumented, destitute, and those in the legal process #HealthAndSafetyForAll

https://statusnow4all.org/status-now-4-all-this-is-our-call/


1 December 2023: One Life To Live: The Bibby Stockholm: Quasi-detention
Measuring the barge against the 6 features of quasi-detention as outlined by the APPG on Immigration Detention

This report examines life for those on the Bibby Stockholm, and includes a letter from the men that was sent to Guardian, that concludes:

Now, we seek refuge in you and hope to walk alongside you on this path with your support and unity. We believe that with our joint effort, we can overcome these unfavourable conditions and achieve the peaceful and secure life that we aspire to.
Respectfully and hopefully

Continue reading “Concerns about the use of barges, army barracks, hotels, offshoring etc etc. continued 2023”

Report: Uniting Europe Against Islamophobia

Another Europe is Possible: Report: Uniting Europe Against Islamophobia

In a time of rising racism, this crucial report details practical strategies to empower Europe’s Muslim communities.

‘Uniting Europe Against Islamophobia’ is a pathbreaking report from a delegation of UK Muslim women activists and politicians to Cologne, Germany, that took place in May-June 2023 to discuss empowering the Muslim community and tackling Islamophobia and xenophobia across all our societies. The delegation was part of an ongoing collaborative partnership between Another Europe Is Possible and the German political education foundation, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.

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Protest on 1 December 2023: Profiting from Misery

21 November 2023: Some people from our signatory organisation RAPAR will be participating in this event on 1 December 2023.

DPAC: Profiting from Misery: Disability and Migrant justice campaigners protest at the companies profiting from depriving people of essential needs.

Profiting from Misery: Disability and Migrant justice campaigners protest at the companies profiting from depriving people of essential needs.

At 4pm on December 1st (two days before international day of disabled people) a coalition of disability and migrant justice organisations, including a group of disabled refugees will meet outside the Home Office to call for a stop to the obscene profits made by private corporations depriving people of human needs.  Clearsprings and Serco are among the private corporations profiting from the government’s outsourcing of asylum accommodation to private corporations.

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Alternative Security Review

November 2023: Rethinking Security: Alternative Security Review: Roundtables on Human Security

During the research phase of the Alternative Security Review, we held a series of roundtable discussions with representatives of UK civil society groups to learn more about what human security might mean in a UK context, what insecurities exist, what organisations are doing to address these insecurities, and what they would recommend for a Human Security Strategy for the UK.  

The discussions acted as consultations, comparable to those that the government carries out for security and other reviews. However, our aim was to invite representatives of groups who experience insecurity or do not have automatic access to policy-making spaces in order to develop an understanding of the insecurities faced by people in the UK that often go unheard in elite circles.

The collective message from these roundtable discussions is that, across all sectors, human and environmental security is not prioritised by government. Instead, traditional ideas about national security prevail, as does a commitment to neoliberalism and the built-in insecurity that creates for many.

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We Dare to Dream – film

Event: We Dare to Dream 

We Dare to Dream is the story of refugee athletes from Iran, Syria, South Sudan and Cameroon who swim, run and fight their way to opportunity and safety in host nations across the world. Spanning a breadth of backgrounds, personal stories and Olympic sports, the film reveals their lives and hopes as they train to compete on the world stage, showing the fire and the drive of young people forced to leave their families, homes and countries of birth to build new lives out of nothing.

You can see the trailer here: https://youtu.be/-KvH55DDNzQ


The film We Dare to Dream is coming to Birmingham on Sunday 10 December 2023:

2: 40pm at Mockingbird Cinema, B9 4AA, with Director Q&A. Book your ticket here https://www.mockingbirdcinema.com/production/we-dare-to-dream/

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The Rwanda Ruling Was a Victory – Here’s Where We Go Next

16 November 2023: Tribune: The Rwanda Ruling Was a Victory – Here’s Where We Go Next

Yesterday, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled the government’s Rwanda policy unlawful. It was a victory for the PCS Union and others who initiated the legal challenge — but the fight for dignity for refugees is far from over.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court upheld the Court of Appeal’s ruling that the UK government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlawful. The court ruled that there was a real risk deported refugees could have their claims wrongly assessed and that they could be returned to their country of origin to face the very persecution which had forced them to flee in the first place. 

This was not only a win for the rights of refugees to seek safety in the UK and a stinging political defeat for the Tories — the judgment was also vindication for all workers and campaigners who see the demonisation of refugees for what it is: a ruse to mask the catastrophic failings on living standards overseen by the Tories. 

It is not refugees who have driven down wages and starved public services of the resources they need – it is the fault of successive Tory governments who have presided over a decade of brutal austerity cuts. 

Continue reading “The Rwanda Ruling Was a Victory – Here’s Where We Go Next”

Braverman had no evidence for ‘fake gay asylum seekers’ claim

16 November 2023: Open Democracy: Braverman had no evidence for ‘fake gay asylum seekers’ claim

Home Office forced to admit it held no information to support allegation made by then home secretary

Suella Braverman had no evidence for her claim that “many” people pretend to be gay in order to “game” the UK asylum system, the Home Office has been forced to admit.

The sacked former home secretary made the allegation in September as she sought to shore up support for her flagship policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda. The plan was deemed unlawful in the Supreme Court earlier today in a rare reprieve for hundreds of people who had been threatened with offshoring before their claims were decided.

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The courts won’t save us from the Home Office’s cruelty.

14 November 2023: Open Democracy: Supreme Court Rwanda ruling is a victory – but not the slam dunk you think

The courts won’t save us from the Home Office’s cruelty. Those who defend refugees must get bolder – fast

he UK Supreme Court has ruled that the government’s flagship Rwanda deportation plan for refugees is unlawful – a decision that will bring relief to thousands of men, women and children seeking asylum in this country who are trapped in the government’s backlog in crummy hotels or on the prison barge.

The Supreme Court found unanimously that there were clear grounds to believe refugees would not be safe in Rwanda, where 100% of people from Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan have had their asylum claims rejected, and where the government itself is accused of torture, extrajudicial killings, and enforced disappearances. The real and serious danger in which our government was aiming to put people who came to us seeking protection is unthinkable and must never be forgotten.

Continue reading “The courts won’t save us from the Home Office’s cruelty.”

Migrant workers face exploitation as result of post-Brexit scheme, says report

14 November 2023: Guardian: Migrant workers face exploitation as result of post-Brexit scheme, says report

Analysis by Work Rights Centre finds Home Office system prioritises immigration control over workers’ rights

Thousands of migrant workers are at risk of exploitation because of multiple failures in the government scheme that allows them to come to the UK, a report has found.

The way the Home Office has set up the employer sponsorship system to replace freedom of movement after Brexit has prioritised immigration control over workers’ rights, according to the report, Systematic Drivers of Migrant Worker Exploitation in the UK, from the Work Rights Centre.

It analysed 40 cases of migrant workers at risk of exploitation, along with documents connected with their cases. According to the latest government figures in the year ending June 2023, 321,000 work visas were granted, a 45% increase on the previous year.

“The exploitation of migrant workers is not coincidental but the outcome of a system, an inadequate and increasingly hostile national policy environment,” the report said.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/nov/14/migrant-workers-face-exploitation-as-result-of-post-brexit-scheme-says-report

Why the changes to the ‘move-on’ period mean more refugees are facing homelessness and destitution

October 2023: Refugee Council: Why the changes to the “move-on” period mean more refugees are facing homelessness and destitution

The Refugee Council has produced this Parliamentary briefing together with organisations from across the housing and asylum sector.

It provides an overview of the two key changes announced in August 2023 which will affect newly recognised refugees in the UK.

Download and read more here: https://www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/information/resources/why-the-changes-to-the-move-on-period-mean-more-refugees-are-facing-homelessness-and-destitution/


See also: Refugees At Home report:

https://refugeesathome.org/case-study/a-new-homelessness-crisis-for-refugees

New report urges stronger protection for UK’s seasonal workers

6 November 2023: The Bureau Investigates: New report urges stronger protections for UK’s seasonal workers

House of Lords report citing TBIJ evidence demands clampdown on abuse, poor living conditions and illegal fees

The House of Lords has published a new report urging the government to clamp down on the abuse that seasonal workers face on UK farms. This follows revelations by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) that hundreds of migrant workers in the UK’s agriculture sector have raised welfare issues including threats, wage theft and racism.

The Horticultural Sector Committee’s report, published on Monday, recommends a number of new measures including that the government split up labour inspectors from immigration enforcement. Citing concerns that workers are often deterred from reporting abuse for fear it might affect their immigration status, the report advises the government to “provide an official source of redress to seasonal workers that is not linked to immigration”.

Read more: https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2023-11-06/new-report-urges-stronger-protections-for-uks-seasonal-workers

We’re living in a nightmare

3 November 2023: Big Issue: ‘We’re living in a nightmare’: Iraqi refugee family evicted into homelessness has lost ‘all sense of safety’ in UK

By Christmas, thousands of people granted asylum to legally remain in Britain could be on the streets. Our investigation reveals a government-made crisis for councils teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, with a fearsome human cost

The Big Issue’s investigation found:

  • The UK’s biggest cities expect at least 6,900 people to be evicted from asylum accommodation by the end of the year, with little capacity to help them.
  • In London, the change in policy has already led to a doubling in the number of rough sleepers who have recently left asylum accommodation, while Manchester has seen a significant increase.
  • Facing unprecedented demand, voluntary services are running out of food, turning destitute refugees away, and resorting to handing out sleeping bags.
  • Leaders of local government are writing to ministers, outlining concern and asking for changes in the policy.
Continue reading “We’re living in a nightmare”