Theresa May’s hostile environment policy is failing, according to a new report. The study by researchers at the University of Oxford found little evidence that immigration enforcement activity deters irregular migrants or encourages them to leave the country – and instead gives rise to criminal practices and pushes undocumented people further underground.
Almost all irregular immigrants interviewed for the report were not deterred by tightened immigration controls or the hostile environment approach, with one saying “being illegal in the UK is still better than being legal in my own country”.
Immigration enforcement had unintended and often “perverse” side effects, as undocumented migrants became increasingly vulnerable to exploitation by employers and fearful of accessing healthcare. Rules requiring employers to conduct passport checks are “pushing undocumented migrant workers into the hands of criminals trading false documents”, while data-sharing between the NHS and the Home Office has led to many being afraid of going to see a doctor. Tighter controls provoke more criminal responses such as false documents.
Chai Patel, legal policy director at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, told The Independent: “The hostile environment doesn’t work to reduce irregular migration, but causes huge amounts of human suffering."
Almost all irregular immigrants interviewed for the report were not deterred by tightened immigration controls or the hostile environment approach, with one saying “being illegal in the UK is still better than being legal in my own country”.
Immigration enforcement had unintended and often “perverse” side effects, as undocumented migrants became increasingly vulnerable to exploitation by employers and fearful of accessing healthcare. Rules requiring employers to conduct passport checks are “pushing undocumented migrant workers into the hands of criminals trading false documents”, while data-sharing between the NHS and the Home Office has led to many being afraid of going to see a doctor. Tighter controls provoke more criminal responses such as false documents.
Chai Patel, legal policy director at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, told The Independent: “The hostile environment doesn’t work to reduce irregular migration, but causes huge amounts of human suffering."
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