MV comments on new Settlement Scheme statistics
» Press MV comments on new Settlement Scheme statistics
On 19 March 2020, the Home Office published its monthly statistics on the EU Settlement Scheme. These statistics included 300 people who had been refused status, most of whom had been refused after not responding to requests for additional evidence.
Migrant Voice spoke to Cristina Gallardo at Politico about this new development:
Nazek Ramadan, director of the campaign group Migrant Voice, said the fact that some applications were being declined was a “worrying and unexpected development.”
The Home Office should not refuse applications on information-related grounds, she said, because there are “countless valid explanations” for an individual failing to provide evidence. These include fearing interactions with immigration services, learning disabilities or health problems, she said.
“The Home Office must urgently provide more information about these cases and their decision to refuse,” she said, including how long the applications were in the system and how many times caseworkers tried to contact the applicants.