An article by our consultant lawyer Zehrah Hasan has been published today in OpenDemocracy, exploring the dangers the heavily-criticised NABA has created for LGBTQI+ people seeking safety in the UK. Find a summary below, or read the full version.

Since the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (NABA) came into law, we are in fact seeing a clear correlation between the higher standard of proof and more refusal decisions, a greater evidential burden on people seeking asylum, and higher expectations from decision makers. For LGBTQI+ people in the asylum system, there’s been a disproportionate impact.

We know that for many LGBTQI+ people escaping violence and harm, the only evidence they have is their own testimony. This is common for people who have been forced to hide their gender identity and/or sexual orientation, conform to cis-heteronormativity, or only lived their truth in total secrecy, due to the risk of imprisonment and criminalisation.

LGBTQI+ people who have fled domestic, societal and state violence may also need time to build and find community in the UK, due to internalised shame and fear. This can be further compounded by the social isolation and trauma they face here, especially if they are detained or housed in unsuitable asylum accommodation, where LGBTQI+ people are more likely to face abuse and harassment.

The NABA entrenches a culture of suspicion, particularly for LGBTQI+ cases, both in interviews and in decisions, with the unfettered influence of preconceived and often Western-centric notions of LGBTQI+ experiences.

There have been long-standing and well-documented problems with asylum decision-making in LGBTQI+ cases; including Home Office refusals being replete with harmful stereotypes, prejudices and misconceptions about LGBTQI+ people’s lives.

But ultimately, the higher standard of proof further marginalises, stigmatises and ostracises LGBTQI+ communities through the UK’s border regime. This injustice is heightened for people of colour, given the racism endemic to British immigration laws and the fact most countries in the Commonwealth that still criminalise LGBTQI+ people do so as a direct result of British colonialism.

It’s time to demand that the new government listens to us and turns away from the cruelty of the past and the mistreatment of people seeking safety. An essential step is to repeal the Nationality and Borders Act to reinstate the previous lower standard of proof which is vital to protecting lives.