news > news releases

Hand-to-mouth existence of Manchester’s destitute asylum seekers

Independent Asylum Commission: Asylum Support and Destitution

12 October 2007

ASYLUM SEEKERS and refugees will tell an independent hearing how they have been forced into a desperate hand-to-mouth existence on the streets of Manchester after their claims were turned down.

A coalition of local agencies headed by Refugee Action has identified asylum seekers and refugees from global trouble spots including Darfur, Ethiopia and Somalia, who will tell the Independent Asylum Commission how they came to be destitute, why they fear returning to their country and how they have survived with no support and no right to work.

Professionals representing local authorities, the health service and charities will also give evidence about the impact of destitution on public services, at the Town Hall on Wednesday 17th October.

The hearing comes after concerned councillors at Manchester City Council debated the issue this week (Wednesday 10th October). Earlier this year the all-party Joint Committee on Human Rights condemned the use of destitution against asylum seekers as inhumane and unacceptable, stating that it “falls below the requirements of the common law of humanity and of international human rights law.”

Nigel Rose, manager of Refugee Action Manchester, will tell the Commission how there are at least 1000 destitute asylum seekers in Greater Manchester alone.

He explains:

“Once an asylum seeker is fully refused they are evicted from their accommodation and their financial support is cut off unless they agree to return to their country of origin, which many are terrified of. This means contact is lost at a crucial time and many end up completely destitute, relying on friends, charities and churches or ending up on the streets.”

The commissioners include Lord Ramsbotham, former Chief Inspector of Prisons and former High Court Judge Sir John Waite. They will produce a report for the government making recommendations for reform.

Refugees giving evidence include a teacher from Darfur who was forced to sleep rough on the streets of Manchester and Selam, a refugee from Ethiopia who was made destitute after her appeal notification was sent to the wrong address.

She will tell the hearing: “I was always moving around sleeping on my friends’ floors and sofas. I could get parcels of food and a small amount of money from a Red Cross drop-in. I have no words to explain what life was like for me. It was a miserable time.” She has since been granted refugee status.

The Commission will also hear evidence from GP Dr Angela Burnett who represents a network of concerned medical practitioners. She will tell the commission how restrictions on access to healthcare for refused asylum seekers have impacted on individuals, on public health and how it has cost the health service money.

Nigel Rose added:

“Far from encouraging refused asylum seekers to return home, destitution has the opposite effect. It means the government loses contact with asylum seekers, who enter a cycle of poverty, fear, hunger, and mental and physical deterioration. Each day that they are destitute, the chances of return become more remote.

“Instead, the government should maintain contact with refused asylum seekers and work with them to resolve their cases.”

The hearing will be held at the Town Hall, Albert Square, on October 17th from 2.30pm. It will be followed by The Destitution Debate, an evening featuring poetry, theatre and music followed by a debate chaired by BBC Radio Manchester’s Allan Beswick. That event will be held at the Waterside Theatre, City College Manchester on Whitworth Street from 7pm until 9pm.
Ends

For more information or to arrange interviews please contact Julia Ravenscroft, press officer at Refugee Action, on 0161 233 1956 or 07771 748 159.

Notes:

Professional speakers at the hearing will be:
- Peter Olner, strategic manager for No Recourse to Public Funds
- Dr Angela Burnett GP, representing MedAct
- Dave Smith, from the BOAZ Trust in Manchester
- Miranda Kaunang from Save the Children
- A representative of the Zimbabwe Support Network
- Solicitor Ruth Heatley, from Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit
Financial support and accommodation for asylum seekers who do not have children is cut off 21 days after a final claim for asylum has been refused. Section 4 'hard case' support makes vouchers and hostel accommodation available to those who meet one or more specific criteria. These include signing up for the government’s Voluntary Assisted Return and Reintegration Programme (VAARP), having a serious medical reason preventing immediate departure from the UK, or there being no voluntary travel route back to their country. The remainder of the refused asylum-seeking population is destitute. The National Audit Office estimated the backlog of refused asylum-seekers at between 155,000 and 283,500.
The Independent Asylum Commission is collecting evidence for an impartial citizens’ enquiry into the UK asylum system. For a full list of commissioners and further details of the Independent Asylum Commission see www.independentasylumcommission.org.uk. To contact the Independent Asylum Commission or to arrange interviews with Commissioners contact Jonathan Cox on 07919 484 066.
Refugee Action is an independent, national charity working to enable refugees to build new lives in the UK. We provide practical advice and assistance for newly arrived asylum seekers and long-term commitment to their settlement through community development work, and received 30,000 visits from asylum seekers last year. As one of the country’s leading agencies in the field, Refugee Action has 26 years’ experience in pioneering innovative work in partnership with refugees.