Recent BBC articles highlight misconduct by a small number of unscrupulous advisers who charge thousands to fabricate asylum claims. This is fraud & must be stopped. But the coverage is selective, harmful & risks obscuring the wider reality of access to legal advice. 🧵

A pretty forensic taking apart of the Government’s reduction in refugee protection by Baroness Lister in the House of Lords. Now being followed by Baroness Teather, a former UK director of the Jesuit Refugee Service (and chair of APPG on refugees when an MP) parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/...

Hundreds of asylum seekers moved from hotels to army barracks, Home Office announces

Ahead of her question on asylum policies and child poverty, Baroness Lister has written a piece for @politicshome.bsky.social criticising the Govt's reduction in the duration of refugee leave www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...

The Lords debate March's changes to the immigration rules this afternoon, including the reduction in leave for refugees to 2.5yrs and the "visa breaks" for students and workers from certain countries. The Lords Scrutiny Committee raised serious concerns publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5901/ld...

The Independent Chief Inspector has published his Inspection Plan for 2026-27. The Inspection Plan includes completed inspection reports that are awaiting publication, inspections begun in 2025-26, and new inspections for 2026-27:

Incredibly serious and under reported proposals - having effectively been hidden within the family returns consultation

The Home Office is currently consulting on removing accommodation and financial support from families who have been refused asylum, even if they've got nowhere else to go. But they won't tell anyone how many people they think will be impacted questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques...

Following feedback from stakeholders, we’ve updated the timelines for our call for evidence. The deadline for submitting new evidence has been extended to 13 May 2026. For existing, previously published research, we encourage submissions by 14 April 2026, where possible.

By the Home Office’s own estimate, the pause will reduce asylum claims by around 1,400 over the next 18 months. More than 100,000 people claimed asylum in the UK last year. It’s a policy that has no operational benefit to the asylum system, while having a huge personal impact on those caught by it.

All four countries have high recognition rates - there was a 98% grant rate for Cameroonians claiming on the basis of sexual orientation in the most recent stats open.substack.com/pub/thoughts...

Of course no one from *checks notes* Sudan or Afghanistan could be in genuine danger.

The House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Ctte has published it's report covering the immigration rules changes. They make a lot of good points about the lack of impact assessments and the piecemeal approach to changes to refugee leave/settlement publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5901/ld...

📉 The policy of the Danish Social Democrats to pursue a hardline immigration policy has backfired after shedding votes to the left and the right, Food for thought for Labour?

This BBC article on votes on settlement changes misses some important points. Firstly, the changes do require legislation in the form of changes to the immigration rules. Secondly, a vote is more than symbolic. And the third point is probably the most important…. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

You can use this link from @refugeecouncil.bsky.social to write to your MP and ask them to add their name to EDM 2908 refugee-council.yourmovement.org/p/early-day-...

On the other hand, this podcast gets it right - and features not only a great discussion of the significance of all this, including as an example of wider issues, but also links to resources: www.hansardsociety.org.uk/news/parliam... 👏👏 @jonfeatonby.bsky.social and @hansardsociety.bsky.social

The latest Parliament Matters podcast includes a look at how changes to immigration are, or rather, aren’t, scrutinised by parliament. It’s probably not a surprise that I really enjoyed being able to join the conversation.

A very good thread from @sundersays.bsky.social on the government's £10 billion claim, taken apart by @tonyvaughanmp.bsky.social on Today programme this am (based on analysis by @ippr.org).

Good to hear @tonyvaughanmp.bsky.social say on BBC Radio 4 Today (7.15pm) programme that "Home Office's whole premisef for these reforms is unfounded: "this £10 billiion does not add up" Govt have (v quietly) said they don't claim they'd save this! But must now provide their actual fiscal numbers!

The House of Lords is scheduled to debate the statement of changes to the immigration rules that was published earlier this month on 14 April. Lord German and Lord Dubs have both tabled regret motions.

I will make exception to my rule about EDMs to stand up for democracy and for refugees. Making them fear deportation does nothing for border control, economy or their sanity. ask other MPs sign EDM 2908 and ensure Parliament has a say on how we treat those we have already given sanctuary.

The latest report from the House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee draws the recent asylum support regulations to the attention of the House, particularly on the grounds of the lack of detail on expected impacts publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5901/ld...

Response to a parliamentary question on why Ministers have decided the move-on period for newly recognised refugees should be 42 days questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques... Not clear there was a lot of science behind it, especially as the evaluation of the 56 day pilot isn't public yet.

In her latest migration letter to the European Council, Commission President @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu notes that displacement in Lebanon and Iran has "for now [...] not translated into immediate migratory flows towards the EU."

A wholly predictable and entirely avoidable outcome of rushed, inadequate decision-making. Vulnerable people are left paying the price, stuck in limbo with their futures on hold. This cannot carry on.

I have done a quick post on today's tribunal stats. Specifically those that relate to the quality (or lack thereof) of Home Office decision making. I also look at the ongoing saga of the missing nationality data in asylum appeals, and why that is important: open.substack.com/pub/thoughts...

📢It's paperback publication day for 'Anywhere But Here'. Now half the piece, half the weight and just as good, if not better (it's been updated!). Lyse Doucet: "Remarkable" Caroline Lucas: "Beautifully-written, bold, brave" The Guardian: "Excellent" amzn.eu/d/0cR9Cw6Z share.google/yHPmCXjfBKyQ...

New stats show the asylum appeals backlog was over 80,000 cases at the end of 2025, relating to around 104,000 people - a 91% increase on a year before. 4 in 10 of all asylum appeals disposed of in the last 3 months of 2025 were withdrawals, the majority of which will be by the Home Office.

The tribunal statistics are out at 9.30am today. They’ll show the backlog of asylum appeals at the end of 2025, which will be higher than the backlog of initial decisions. Also likely to carry on the trend of high numbers of withdrawals following a drop in the quality of home office decisions.

The Home Office hasn't made a lot of noise it, but the move-on period for newly recognised refugees is now 42 days from date of decision, as confirmed in this written answer questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques... The evaluation of the pilot of 56 days has not been published.

Here's a letter from Alex Norris to the Home Affairs Select Committee about the three statutory instruments laid last week regarding asylum support committees.parliament.uk/publications...

Some more details about how core protection and the work & study protection route may work. Responding to a written question, Alex Norris confirmed those on the work & study route won't have their protection needs reviewed when extending their leave questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques...

I don't know where this narrative of "permanent" refugee status came from (right wing press), but it is wrong. The change is from a single grant of five years' leave followed by the ability to apply for settlement

EXCL: Home Office rejected appeal from foreign secretary Yvette Cooper that would have protected outstanding students in some of the world’s most dangerous countries from changes to UK’s immigration system. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Parallel govt announcements to make settlement harder for migrants and refugees will also create significant new barriers to the new proposals for integration, who face less certainty and potential barriers to jobs + housing from prolonged 'unsettlement'

Pleased to see the government launch a national strategy for community cohesion today. Some initial thoughts on its strengths and gaps 🧵 www.gov.uk/government/p...

🔴 Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Philps MP is asking an urgent question: " To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will make a statement on the Government’s recently announced immigration policy and the associated changes to the Immigration Rules laid before Parliament last week.”

Been looking forward to reading this one - UNHCR has today published their report "Asylum Interviews in the UK: Audit Findings and Recommendations". It's 92 pages so I am going to get stuck in and will write it up for later today. www.unhcr.org/uk/publicati...

One of the other worrying aspects of this consultation is that it proposes evicting families with children from Home Office accommodation if they’ve been refused asylum and have exhausted any appeals, even if the government isn’t actively trying to remove them www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

📢"The UK can have a functioning immigration system without abandoning the principle of equal protection under the law." Our CEO @minnierahman.bsky.social in @lbc.co.uk on the Government's ICE-style asylum reforms this week. www.lbc.co.uk/article/labo...

"A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen." Just off the top of my head the potential interaction with local authority homelessness and social care duties feels significant?

"There is an alternative way forward: being True – not Blue – Labour. True Labour doesn’t fear those who are different. Instead, it demands everyone contribute their abilities to society – and works to unlock such skills." www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Thank you @stellacreasy.bsky.social for already tabling the motion opposing today’s immigration rules changes. The government should allow scrutiny of their plans and schedule a debate on this motion. edm.parliament.uk/early-day-mo...

Oh, so they've made it worse. A massive surprise there. I am particularly disliking the amendment to require everyone making further submissions to attend a SSC which would prevent any claims made from detention, or by the seriously ill

The statement of changes to the immigration rules www.gov.uk/government/p... and the written statement (which goes wider than the rules changes) are now out questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-stat...

Meanwhile, refugee family reunion continues to be paused, the Afghan schemes have been shut, and only 537 people came through the UK's flagship resettlement scheme last year.

Misrepresenting the Refugee Convention. It also says this:

People who are stuck waiting in the asylum system tell us that they are waking up in fear because of the barrage of hostility they face from this government. They say the state of constant fear is working directly against their ability to contribute and build a life here.