ANOTHER CRACKDOWN ON ASYLUM SEEKERS 2

Tony Blair predicted that the number of migrants heading to Britain would drop as a result of the Government's overhaul of the immigration and asylum system. Mr Blair was challenged over whether the Government's five-year asylum and immigration plan would lead to a rise or fall in net immigration. He said, "The numbers probably will fall because those people who are coming in, abusing the system or who aren't covered by the restrictions, won't be able to settle here." The Prime Minister's forecast contradicted the Home Secretary, Charles Clarke, who said that the proposals were unlikely greatly to affect overall migrant numbers.

Under the plans, only highly skilled workers who speak English and pass a "Britishness test" will be allowed to settle permanently in the UK. Low-skilled migrants will be permitted to enter for fixed periods but receive no right to settle. Mr Blair ridiculed Tory proposals, which include an annual cap on immigrants and offshore processing. But Mr Howard produced a letter from the Prime Minister to the President of the European Council in 2003 offering to discuss the idea of sending people seeking asylum in EU countries to a "transit processing centre" outside the European nations.

The Tories returned to the impact of the expansion of the European Union on 1 May 2004. New figures showed that 1,029,000 people from the eight new eastern European members visited Britain in the first eight months after accession with approximately 92,000 saying they were intending to stay for more than three months. That compared with an initial government prediction that expansion of the EU could lead to net migration of up to 13,000. Migrationwatch UK said that there had been a major trend of white families moving out of London to the regions, while large numbers of ethnic minorities arrived in the capital from overseas. (Source: The Independent)

Thousands of asylum seekers, who pocketed Government bribes to quit Britain are heading back to the UK, to claim a second helping. In 2006 alone, more than 6,000 foreigners were handed up to £3,000 each plus a plane ticket to leave but under Home Office rules, there is nothing to stop them returning to ask for asylum again in the hope of grabbing another bundle of taxpayers' cash. The "free money" scandal costs Brits more than £40million a year in payouts, air fares and admin costs. TaxPayers' Alliance chief executive Matthew Elliott stormed, "There should be extremely severe penalties for people who rip off the asylum system in this way. Taxpayers already contribute billions of pounds a year to help asylum-seekers so when they abuse our help it is doubly insulting."

Officials admitted at least 16,000 foreigners have cashed in since the Assisted Voluntary Return programmes were launched in 1999 and they revealed that grants to asylum seekers who claim they want to leave the UK will rise by £500 this year to a maximum of £3,500. At present, the overall cost of the programmes would be enough to pay for 2,000 new teachers, nurses or cops. At least 300 people have already been caught returning to Britain to try to get another pay-off under their real names and the Home Office has no idea how many more have sneaked back into the country with new identities. Incredibly, 200 of the 300 who were caught were later allowed to stay in the country.

Many are lured here by the chance of collecting the £3,500 bribe, a fortune in the Third World, once they have registered as asylum seekers. Some are even planning second visits to the UK. Afghan Ali Hussein lived in Hounslow, west London, for six months on his first trip here but his application to stay in the UK was rejected and he was paid to go home. As he waited in Calais for another bite of the cherry he said, "I was very pleased about that and it made me want to come back. Why not? I will use a different story, and if that fails, I will get more money when I am sent home."

The benefits are paid out under a string of different Government schemes. The biggest is the Voluntary Assisted Return and Reintegration Programme, which is available to asylum seekers waiting for a Home Office decision or appealing against deportation. Other schemes include AVRIM, Assisted Voluntary Return of Irregular Migrants, which is aimed at the victims of people-traffickers and illegal immigrants who have been smuggled into Britain. The handouts are paid to individuals in a £500 cash lump sum at a UK airport. Another £3000 is dished out in cash and benefits once they are back home. It includes educational and business help.

Whitehall chiefs insist this is cheaper than the £11,000 it costs to forcibly repatriate a failed asylum seeker. The Home Office had tried to crack down on abuses two years ago by banning anyone from making two claims for a deportation bribe. But asylum seekers simply bought themselves a new identity before arriving in Britain, and claimed under a different name. A Home Office spokesman said, "Removals are always carried out at the lowest cost so we promote voluntary returns as a cost-effective alternative to forced removal. This is better for the deportee and we provide assistance for those who are willing to return to their own country. Any individual who is not in need of international protection should be expected to leave the UK." (Source: Sunday People, Mar/07)

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