News: Refugees, asylum seekers & migrants

30.04.2004 The government has published details of its amendments to the Asylum and Immigration Bill including the rights to appeal a decision by an immigration tribunal.

28.04.2004 Tony Blair's efforts to reassure voters that his government has a firm grip on immigration prompted Conservative complaints that he is in a "blind panic" on an issue that could influence the next general election.

23.04.2004 A scheme in Glasgow, financed by the European Social Fund, has been training asylum seekers as Citizens Advice Bureau advisors whilst decisions are made on their claims.

22.04.2004 Religious leaders are hoping the Lords will listen to their pleas and repeal a harsh asylum law, which has left 10,000 asylum seekers destitute.

19.04.2004 The government's crackdown on illegal immigrants and bogus asylum seekers is resulting in people being detained in rudimentary police cells for excessive periods of up to 96 hours, according to the Guardian newspaper.

16.04.2004 A deal to extend Britain's borders to the Eurostar terminal in Brussels has been finalised, reports BBC News. It will mean UK officials can stop travellers with false or inadequate papers before they board trains and are able to claim asylum in the UK.

15.04.2004 A new safe house for trafficked children opened in the UK on 1 April, six months after the only such safe house in the country was closed. The house will provide trafficked girls and boys aged 16-18 with safe shelter, medical care, legal advice and education. Children under 16 will be placed with families.

13.04.2004 The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants has urged the government to look for more secure foundations for managed migration, based on the rights of migrants themselves.

08.04.2004 The Refugee Council's report Hungry and homeless: the impact of the withdrawal of state support on asylum seekers, refugee communities and the voluntary sector details the devastating impact Section 55 - the policy of refusing welfare support to asylum seekers who do not claim asylum immediately upon arrival - is having on refugees and their communities.

06.04.2004 David Blunkett's chief academic adviser on immigration has attacked the Home Office for pursuing a one-sided, get-tough policy and sidelining English integration classes for new migrants.