Humanists UK warns Government’s New Immigration Plan will harm non-religious asylum seekers

11 May, 2021

Humanists UK has expressed concern about proposals put forward by the Home Office in a consultation on its New Plan for Immigration, which would impose unfair and undue barriers upon those seeking asylum in the UK after fleeing persecution in their countries of origin, including humanists who face the death penalty in 13 countries for expressing their beliefs under blasphemy and apostasy laws.

The Home Office’s plan outlines several proposals to reform asylum laws to reduce the number of people able to gain asylum. Most notably, it plans to raise the evidential standards required to reach the threshold of a ‘well-founded fear of persecution.’ This will disproportionately negatively affect non-religious asylum claimants who are systematically missing from consideration in international refugee regimes and from the UK’s country-based guidance on persecution.

The plan also includes proposals to introduce a temporary protection order, rather than grant asylum, for those who have entered the UK by irregular means or are present in the UK without permission before making a claim, to create offshore asylum processing centres, and to deport claimants while they still have cases and appeals pending.

Humanists UK’s Director of Public Affairs and Policy Richy Thompson commented, ‘We are concerned that these proposals will make it significantly more difficult for apostates and other non-religious asylum seekers to gain asylum in the UK. Although things have improved in recent years, thanks to training we helped introduce, there remains a distinct lack of knowledge and understanding of non-religious persecution within the Home Office as this is often not covered in country guidance on which asylum decisions are made. This puts non-religious asylum seekers at a distinct disadvantage compared to asylum seekers claiming on the basis of religion. Plans to raise the bar on evidential standards without addressing current failings and shortcomings in Home Office processes will lead to an increase in poor decision-making and injustice.’

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For further comment or information, please contact Humanists UK Director of Public Affairs and Policy Richy Thompson at press@humanists.uk or phone 020 7324 3072 or 020 3675 0959.

Read the New Plan for Immigration

Read our response to the consultation.

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