Draft Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (Amendment of List of Safe States) Regulations 2024

Michael Tomlinson Excerpts

Wednesday 10th January 2024 General Committees

[The Chair]

Before I call the Minister to move the motion, I remind Members, particularly those on the Back Benches, that if they want to catch my eye, they should bob, as per the usual convention.

[The Minister for Countering Illegal Migration (Michael Tomlinson)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the draft Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 (Amendment of List of Safe States) Regulations 2024.

What a great pleasure it is to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Bardell. I think it is the first time that I have had the privilege to serve with you in the Chair. It is good to welcome hon. and right hon. Members to this Committee.

These regulations seek to add Georgia and India to the list of safe countries of origin. The inadmissibility of asylum claims has been a long-standing process in the UK. Under the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002, the Secretary of State must declare an asylum claim made by a national of an EU member inadmissible unless there are exceptional circumstances. These provisions will reduce pressures on our asylum system and allow us to focus on those most in need of protection, but it is right to say that it is not only EU states that are safe countries. As soon as section 59 of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 is commenced, these provisions will be expanded to include the inadmissibility of asylum and human rights claims from other states considered generally safe.

The list of safe countries of origin comprises the EU states, as now. It also includes other European economic area states, namely Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, as well as Switzerland and Albania. The rationale underpinning the proposed addition of India and Georgia to the list is that that will tackle unfounded and unnecessary protection and human rights claims from people who are in safe countries. India and Georgia are countries in which we have seen an increase in the volumes of asylum intake, so consideration has been given as to whether it would be appropriate to add them to the list of safe countries of origin. Having reviewed the relevant information and evidence from a wide range of reliable sources relating to the safety of Georgia and India, including consideration of their respect for the rule of law and human rights, we assess that both countries meet the criteria as set out in section 80AA(3) of the 2002 Act and are generally safe, so it is appropriate to add these countries to the list.

[Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)]

Declaring a country to be safe does not necessarily make it safe. Can the Minister tell me how many asylum claims were granted by the Government from Georgia and from India in the last two years?

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[Michael Tomlinson]

I can tell the hon. Gentleman that there has been an increase in the number of those claiming asylum from those countries; I said that a few moments ago. They are countries where we have seen an increase in the volumes of claims. There has been double the number of claims coming from India in the 12 months to September 2023 and triple compared with the year ending September 2019. In relation to Georgia, the volume is nine times higher. This statutory instrument is short and its focus is narrow, but it is important, and for the reasons that I have set out, I commend the regulations to the Committee.

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[Michael Tomlinson]

May I say in response to the right hon. Gentleman’s final point that I think the Committee takes this subject incredibly seriously? That is why we have heard a number of speeches today. I speak for myself, but I suspect I also speak for hon. Members on our side of the Committee, and doubtless on his side as well, when I say that all our proceedings in this House, whether in Committee or on the Floor of the House, are important. Whether it is a Committee on an SI that completes in five minutes, one that takes the full 90 minutes or, like today, one that might be completed in a slightly shorter period, these are important issues. He is right to say that and I agree, at least to that extent, with what he has said.

Let me set out again the general point of the regulations. The SI does not look at the inadmissibility provisions, so it is not introducing a new process or a new policy; it simply seeks to expand and extend the list as it stands. I emphasise that the purpose of the SI is to reduce the pressure on our asylum system from those who do not need to seek asylum or protection in this country.

I will deal with as many of the points that were raised as I can. First, I welcome the response from the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Aberavon, and his support—I accept that it is cautious support—for the regulations. I take on board his points and will perhaps answer some of them. He was absolutely right to say that there is a wider debate about the Illegal Migration Act. Today is not the day for that, but I am sure it will be had in due course.

I reassure the shadow Minister that I have heard what he said about the guidance loud and clear. In answer to his two specific questions, no, it is not yet published; and yes, it will be. As for precisely when, as soon as section 59 of the Illegal Migration Act is in force, the guidance will be there as well.

The shadow Minister asked about the number of returns for Georgia and India. The right hon. Member for Exeter also had specific questions about numbers, which I will come to in a moment. For Georgia, the returns for the year ending September 2022 were 24, and for the year ending September 2023, they were 37. For India, for the year ending September 2022, they were 1,725, and for the year ending September 2023, they were 3,155. The point about the guidance is relevant to what the right hon. Member said about exceptions. That is part of the answer, but I will come back to his broader point in a moment.

As for the shadow Minister’s final point on retrospection, he will have to contain his impatience a little longer. He will find that out in due course. It is not strictly relevant for this SI, but it is doubtless a debate that we will return to.

I am sorry that the hon. Member for Glasgow South West does not support the regulations—so far: he might be persuaded by my closing remarks to change his mind, you never know. He still has a chance to do that. He mentioned a number of concerns and reports, which I will turn to in a few moments. I was challenged on the numbers by the hon. Gentleman and by the right hon. Member for Exeter. For the year ending September 2023, applications from India increased to more than 4,700, doubling from the year before and trebling from September 2019. There were 1,340 applications from Georgia in the year ending September 2023. We are talking about figures, not just percentages.

Members are right that there have been critical reports, but they must not be looked at in isolation. I will return to this point in a minute, but it is important to look at a broad range of sources, not just one or two reports in isolation.

I turn to the very serious points that were rightly raised by the right hon. Member for Exeter. The shadow Minister mentioned in passing the evidence that is there in the country policy and information notes. Specifically on the LGBTI community, there were updates in August 2023 in relation to India and, more recently, December 2023 in relation to Georgia. These are public documents on the gov.uk website. You, Ms Bardell, members of the Committee and anyone tuning in can look them up right now. Although there have been concerns, that is not the same as there being a general, serious risk of persecution.

Let me address directly the point about India, because the UK courts considered this issue in 2014 and, more recently, in 2016, and found that India was a safe country. There was not a general risk to gay men in the 2014 case or to lesbian women in the 2016 case. I hope that, when the right hon. Member for Exeter has the chance to look at that data, he will be reassured by the broader nature of the evidence set out as part of that assessment. It is right to say that the test is that, in general, there is no serious risk of persecution there for nationals of that country and that removals of nationals to that country would not contravene our obligations under the ECHR.

[Mr Bradshaw]

In their latest assessment of India, the Government might not think there is a general danger to LGBT people, but there are clearly real dangers to individual LGBT people in both India and Georgia, as is recognised by the fact that they have claimed asylum successfully in this country and the fact that other countries have recognised cases based on sexual orientation and gender as well. What can the Minister say to reassure me that those people will still be able to use his exceptional circumstances route to make an asylum claim in this country and not be automatically deported to potential violence and death?

[Michael Tomlinson]

The point that I am making to the right hon. Gentleman is that a broad range of evidence has been considered. This has been considered by the UK courts. The assessment has been made that in both India and Georgia there is, in general, no serious risk of persecution for nationals. That is what this Committee is considering. I have pointed him to the evidence—which he rightly and legitimately asks for—that was published on gov.uk in December and August last year in respect of India and Georgia, but that should not be taken in isolation.

[Sarah Owen]

I do not know whether I fell off the Minister’s list of questions to be answered, but I would be grateful for a clarification as to whether the Indian-controlled region of Jammu and Kashmir is also included on this safe list or not, and whether his and his Government’s so-called commitment to stopping violence against women and girls internationally aligns with some of the human rights records that we have heard about in both Georgia and India.

[Michael Tomlinson]

I hope that the hon. Lady will forgive me because she did raise that question. Yes, it does relate to India as a whole. On her question about certain specific reports, my response—she is absolutely right: I should have included her—was not just to the right hon. Member for Exeter and the shadow Minister, but to her, too. Single reports must not, and should not, be taken in isolation. Rather, there should be a whole raft of evidence, such as from case law, academia, reputable domestic and international media outlets, and national and international organisations, including human rights organisations, and from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. There should be a wide range of evidence, not just one document. One cannot just cherry-pick.

As we have heard from this debate, this is a short, narrow, but important SI. I commend the regulations to the Committee.

Question put.