As the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill continues its passage through Parliament, we, together with other organisations in the sector, are calling the government to repeal the Illegal Migration Act (IMA 2023), a cruel piece of legislation brought forward by the previous government.
The government recently took a positive step by announcing the repeal of the Safety of Rwanda Act. It must now do the same with the IMA.
Among other things, section 59 of the Illegal Migration Act (IMA 2023) extends the list of so-called ‘safe’ countries where the government can send people back to without giving them a chance to seek protection in the UK, except in exceptional circumstances. The extension will include countries which are not in fact safe, like India, Albania and Georgia.
In countries like India, Georgia and Albania, there’s widespread evidence that LGBTQI+ people face real danger.
The submission also highlights that section 59 of the IMA is unlawful, discriminatory and likely unworkable in practice. It will lead to significant breaches of international law, including the Refugee Convention, the Human Rights Convention, and the Convention on Action Against Trafficking in Human Beings.
The joint submission by Asylos, Helen Bamber Foundation, Asylum Aid, ILPA, Migrant and Refugee Children’s Legal Unit (MiCLU), Public Law Project, Women for Refugee Women and Shpresa Programme and us, Rainbow Migration, presents evidence to encourage the Committee to repeal the IMA and prevent serious harm to people that are seeking to rebuild their lives in safety here.
You can download the full joint submission.