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

Sarah Owen Excerpts

Wednesday 10th January 2024 General Committees

[Sarah Owen (Luton North) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair today, Ms Bardell.

I take note of all the points made by the Minister, but I will echo some of those made by our shadow Minister and the SNP spokesperson. In particular, I have three main points or questions about India that I would be grateful if the Minister clarified. First, when referencing India as a completely safe state, does that include the Indian-controlled Jammu and Kashmir region, especially in light of the Indian Government’s revocation of article 370, whereby it now fails to recognise Jammu and Kashmir as a separate state?

My second point follows on from those made about LGBT rights, and about women and violence against women and girls in particular. Human Rights Watch has said that there have been 31,677 cases of rape in a year in India. That is 87 daily cases of rape against women and girls, and we know that there is huge under-reporting. That is an astonishing figure, and it is one that is getting worse. The picture is the same for so-called honour killings. In 2020, 25 honour killings were reported, but only one in 2017 and 2018, so the situation is getting worse, not better—again, even in the light of what we know about the serious under-reporting of both crimes.

My third point is about Rohingya Muslims. Last year, the Indian Government forcibly returned Rohingya women to Myanmar, despite calls for the deportations to stop. My question to the Minister is simple: what has changed? What does the Minister believe has got better in recent years to move India back on to the safe list? International organisations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have said repeatedly that the situation is getting worse, not better, particularly for women and girls.

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[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.