Film launch at Westminster

Film launch at Westminster

On Tuesday 21 May, we, together with Stephen Timms MP, are hosting the launch of "Inquisition", a short film about the injustice faced by thousands of international students who were wrongly accused of cheating by the Home Office in 2014 and had their visas revoked or refused.

The 14-minute documentary was made by award-winning filmmaker Tim Langford for Migrant Voice and features five of the affected students, who tell their stories to the camera. It's a harrowing watch and marks a major milestone in our "My Future Back" campaign.

Watch the trailer here.

The film will be shown in full for the first time on 21 May in Portcullis House, Westminster. The event begins at 6pm and we are inviting politicians, journalists, affected students and campaign supporters to attend. The film showing will be followed by a panel and audience discussion, featuring high-profile journalists and MPs.

Places are limited, but if you would like to attend, or find out more about the campaign, please email Cameron Ball at [email protected] or Communications Officer Judith Vonberg at [email protected].

Migrant Voice has been working alongside many of the students affected by the wrongful allegations since 2017. In July we launched a report in Parliament, which led to a Parliamentary debate in September, where MPs described this issue as Britain's "forgotten immigration scandal". In January, we took the campaign back to Westminster with a demonstration and event inside Parliament. Our work resulted in the establishment of a new all-party parliamentary group, chaired by Stephen Timms MP, a long-time supporter of the students. The APPG will gather information from legal professionals and those affected and produce a report into the government's handling of the issue.

The National Audit Office, top government watchdog, is also now investigating the government on this matter and we are working closely with them in that process.

It's five years since the first allegations and many of the students who stayed in the UK to try and clear their names are destitute and suffering severe mental health problems. Most haven’t seen their families back home for five years and have missed weddings and funerals of close relatives. Many have contemplated or attempted suicide.

Those who have left the UK can’t start new courses, find good jobs or get a visa for any other country due to the black mark against their name. Many have also been rejected by their families, who have a strong belief in this country’s justice system and can’t believe the UK would treat an innocent person this way.

We are calling for the Home Secretary to give all those accused the chance to sit a new English test, and clear the names and restore the visas of those who pass.

To find out more about the campaign and to take action:

- Read our latest briefing here

- Sign the petition here

- See media coverage of the issue here