Home Office and Parliament
The Home Office announced that the UK’s labour market will be opened gradually to citizens of Bulgaria and Romania after the two countries join the European Union in January 2007. The UK has decided to limit access to its labour market following the European Commission’s recommendation to permit Bulgaria and Romania to join the EU on 1 January 2007. From that date Romanians and Bulgarians will have the right to travel throughout the EU. In the UK low-skilled workers from Romania and Bulgaria will be restricted to existing quota schemes to fill vacancies in the agricultural and food processing sectors. There will be no net increase in these existing schemes and workers will be required to have an authorisation document. Skilled workers will be able to work in the UK - as now - if they get a work permit or qualify under the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme, if they are a student, are self employed or as their dependents. More info
The Minister Liam Byrne explained that from 1 January 2007 all low-skilled migration schemes for workers from outside the EU are to be phased out. Places on the two low-skilled migration schemes for non-EU workers (the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme and the Sectors Based scheme) will now be restricted to nationals from Romania and Bulgaria. More info
UK Visas published a consolidated list of posts abroad that are for various reasons offering a restricted service. More info
The Asylum and Immigration Tribunal (Procedure) (Amendment) Rules 2006 enter into force on 13th November 2006. Amongst other things, they de-prescribe the appeal forms and provide that the appeal must be made in a form approved for the purpose by the President (rules 2,3,12,13 and 16); require the Tribunal to provide reasons for a decision in relation to a late notice of appeal; make provision for a notice of appeal which is signed by a representative to be deemed to constitute notification to the Tribunal that the representative is acting; and make provision for the President of the Tribunal to review and set aside orders, notices of decision and determinations in circumstances where they are wrongly made as a result of administrative errors at the Tribunal. More info
Other News
Issue Paper No.49: Towards a Common European Asylum Policy by Stefano Bertozzi and Ferruccio Pastore assesses the progress made so far in developing a Common European Asylum Policy, highlights the work which still needs to be done, and warns that both effective implementation and political commitment are essential to the process. More info
Cases
In DP (Israel) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2006] EWCA Civ 1375 (10 October 2006) the Court of Appeal noted that it was unsatisfactory for an immigration judge to decline to place any weight on the evidence of witnesses because of their relationship or friendship with the applicant. More info
In HH (Iraq) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2006] EWCA Civ 1374 (09 October 2006) the Court of Appeal ruled that it would require a very careful examination of the position before any such adverse inference were drawn from a failure to claim asylum in a country that was not a signatory to the Refugee Convention and is not a safe country within the meaning of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc) Act 2004. More info
In the European Court of Human Rights’ Chamber judgment in the case of Khudobin v. Russia, an entrapped drug trafficker who was was HIV-positive and suffered from a serious mental disorder was found to have been the subject of Article 3 violations in a remand prison. More info
Events
In Joint Committee on Human Rights press notice no. 55, the JCHR gave notice of their forthcoming Public Evidence Session: The Case for the Human Rights Act (Monday 30th October at 4.15 pm, Committee Room 8) More info
Garden Court Chambers Seminars
The New Immigration Asylum and Nationality Act 2006
Thursday 9th November 2006
6.30pm – 8pm
1.5 CPD
Click here to book a place
