Contempt, Criminalisation, and No Compassion: The UK’s Asylum System

The right to asylum is one of the oldest legal rights in the world and has been recognised by societies as divergent as Ancient Greece to Medieval England. The modern day version of the right to asylum stems from the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and states that ‘Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution’. Anyone escaping persecution has the right to seek asylum in the UK, but there is no guarantee that this would be accepted; a request for asylum will only be granted if the person in question can prove that the UK is not their own country, their claim to being persecuted is truthful – or their fear of persecution is legitimate, the persecution in question is based on race, nationality, political opinion, religion, or social grouping, and that their own government cannot protect them. Sadly, however, in the United Kingdom this right has been eroded over the years and public perception of asylum seekers has been negatively affected by government policy and media coverage. This perception damages not only asylum seekers, but many migrants and even those with British citizenship if they do not fit the stereotypical image of a Brit.

Asylum seekers are expected to make their asylum claim as soon as they enter the UK. If they do not then they reduce their chances of success as the Home Office argues that a lack of immediacy equates to them not really being at risk. The legitimacy of this argument is extremely questionable as it would be reasonable to assume that many of those who don’t immediately make their claim are simply unaware of the UK’s asylum system, especially as they are fleeing a desperate situation which means they may have been forced to leave without the luxury of research time. This is a simple but insidious method of devaluing asylum claims, and it also feeds into the deeper reality of public opinion. As asylum can only be claimed from inside the UK or directly at the border, not in advance, the idea that asylum seekers have entered ‘illegally’ becomes prevalent despite it not being technically true. Illegality should never be used as a stick to beat those attempting to escape hardship, even if it were an accurate description, but in this case it is not as making your way into the UK without an accepted asylum claim is a necessity of the process rather than an individual choice.

The ’Hostile Environment’ policy, introduced in 2012, was designed to make staying in the UK as difficult as possible for those without leave to remain. Although the term is no longer in official use, its associated practices continue. One of the most damning aspects of this policy is the ‘Deport First, Appeal Later’ scheme brought in in 2014 under Theresa May’s Conservative government which was eventually ruled unlawful in 2017, as the Supreme Court announced that deporting foreign nationals before hearing an appeal was a breach of their human rights. This policy, although now officially defunct has had an impact that cannot be overstated on both public perception, and the lives of those who were illegally deported. Despite the ‘Deport First, Appeal Later’ scheme being discontinued due to the Supreme Court’s ruling, the Home Office’s attitude and response to asylum claims has not improved and these claims are dealt with in much the same way that deportations were – deny first, ask questions later. In 2017, almost 68% of asylum claims were refused initially, with 35% of refusals being overturned at a later stage. The ramifications of this are staggering; over a third of denied asylum claims were refused incorrectly, and this is only at the lower end of the potential real level as not every asylum seeker will have the means or knowledge to challenge an initial refusal. Not only does this demonstrate a lack of concern for the mental health of asylum seekers, but also for their lives, as the difference between having a claim accepted or being sent back to face what they were fleeing can be a matter of life or death.

One of the most barbaric ways that asylum seekers are criminalised is that of detention. In 2018 alone just shy of 25,000 people entered detention, and the scope of people who can be subjected to this is quite broad: asylum seekers with a claim in progress, asylum seekers whose claim was turned down, those who have breached their visas, foreign nationals awaiting deportation, and even children. The Home Office claims that detention is to be used as a last resort, however it is clear that the opposite is true and that it has become the norm rather than the outlier. Last year a parliamentary report discovered that 61% of individuals in detention were asylum seekers, providing an eye-opening insight into the disproportionate effect that detention has on people seeking asylum. Even more concerning in many senses is that legally there is no definitive time limit on detention, meaning that it can effectively be indefinite, and it is not uncommon for asylum seekers to die in detention due to neglect.

The criminalisation of asylum seekers in the United Kingdom has created a situation where the people involved are put at risk of violence; both in their home country if their claim is not successful, but also in the UK from abusive detention centres and members of the public swayed by a government and media that denigrates the vulnerable. The mental health of asylum seekers is disproportionately poor, stemming from their unacceptable treatment at the hands of the Home Office and the isolation caused by being a member of a group of people who are barely tolerated. The destitution and homelessness that arises amongst asylum seekers even when they are successfully granted asylum against the odds demonstrates that, even in the best case scenario of a successful claim, they are still not adequately provided for by this country. The UK’s asylum system needs to be completely restructured and built again from the ground up if we are to live in a country that cares for those in need and treats them with compassion rather than contempt.

Jack Yates is a content writer for the Immigration Advice Service, an organisation of UK immigration lawyers providing free advice and support to asylum seekers and victims of abuse.