European citizens are threatened with deportation and detained despite having applied to settled status, which is against the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
TheHome OfficeEven though EU nationals could not prove that they had applied for settled status, the EU has issued removal instructions to them.
The Home Office was accused of “wilful” deportation, claiming that it wanted to deport as many EU citizens as possible, arguing that they are more difficult to remove than asylum seekers.
Legal charityBail for Immigration Detainees(Bid), a member of the immigration enforcement team, wrote to the Head of Immigration Enforcement on 29 July to express concern over the Home Office’s inability to acknowledge receipt of settled status requests in cases where it attempted to deport EU citizens.
Pierre MakhloufBid’s legal director, Jeremy Sullivan, stated that it seems like the Home Office has already decided the fate of some EU nationals. Perhaps they believe that they can be removed easily. It is sidestepping legal requirements and procedures in its quest to deport more people.
“Whether it is administrative neglect or willful neglect is unclear. However, by failing to acknowledge the legal actions that EU citizens have taken to assert their rights, Britain is violating its obligations under the withdrawal agreement.”
