Covid-19: Support and Accommodation for Asylum Seekers Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Home Office
Aaron Bell
Main Page: Aaron Bell (Conservative - Newcastle-under-Lyme)Department Debates - View all Aaron Bell's debates with the Home Office
Covid-19: Support and Accommodation for Asylum Seekers
Aaron Bell Excerpts(4 years, 6 months ago)
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Aaron Bell (Newcastle-under-Lyme) (Con)
May I start, Mr Speaker, by associating myself with the sympathies you offered to the people of Glasgow on this horrible attack?
I agree with my hon. Friend the Minister that we have a proud history of helping those most in need. Does he agree that those who abuse asylum make it harder for those who are genuinely vulnerable, and so can he confirm that the Home Office is committed to reforming the system, so that it can make swifter judgments and truly work for those most in need?
Chris Philp
I thank my hon. Friend for his question, and he is right. Some asylum claims are meritorious—obviously, many are—and we should work quickly and humanely to grant those applications and offer help on integrating into UK society. But where there are meritless asylum claims, we need to make sure those are equally identified and rejected quickly, because it is unfair on the British public as a whole and on genuine asylum claimants if unmeritorious claims take up too much time in our system.