Key Facts

• Lords amendment 4B relates to family reunion and unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.
• The Government plans to bring forward legislation next year to reform their broken asylum system.
• Since 2010, the UK has granted protection and other leave to more than 44,000 children seeking protection.
• The current rules apply alongside Dublin for EU members.
• A review of the migration system is part of a general stock-take.
• Key elements of the Government’s future border and immigration system include skilled workers routes and social security co-ordination.
• Further delay would put at risk ending free movement by the end of the transition period.
• The Dublin regulations will end in December 2020.
• Between 2016 and 2018, an average of 547 people annually used family reunions under the Dublin III provisions to come to the UK.
• Safe Passage has pledged more than 1,400 places for unaccompanied child refugees in Europe.
• The Greek Government has been appealing for international help since last October.
• The Lords amendment was defeated in the House by 320 votes to 242.
• Lord Dubs has been leading the charge on this issue.
• The Government's proposed amendment commits to reviewing safe and legal routes without providing a specific timeline or details for replacement schemes.
• A young teenage boy from Greek islands would struggle under rule 319X due to strict evidential requirements and financial barriers.
• Some 7,400 refugees have been issued family reunion visas in the year ending March 2020 but only from outside the EU.
• More than 30 councils across the country have offered places to over 1,400 refugees.
• Bilateral agreements replacing Dublin features are months or years away.
• There is no prospect of a negotiated settlement with the EU by the end of December.
• The domestic immigration rules for family reunion are more restricted compared to Dublin.
• The Government's proposed review will look at safe and legal routes to sanctuary but it is not an immediate alternative to the Lords amendment.
• A 14-year-old boy in Paris has absconded due to fears of changing rules, risking dangerous journeys with smugglers or traffickers.
• From 2015, there was a doubling of unaccompanied children and young people coming into UK care under the Children Act 1989.
• Rasoul Iran-Nejad, Shiva Mohammad Panahi, their daughter Anita (8), son Armin (6), and baby Artin (15 months) lost their lives attempting to cross the English channel.
• Since 1999, 292 people have died crossing the channel to the UK with numbers increasing since 2013.
• The Home Secretary was reportedly considering ideas like obstacles in the channel and offshore migrant centres on Ascension Island.
• Tim Farron criticises the overreaction to refugee numbers and emphasises the importance of safe routes.
• Jim Shannon expresses concerns about long-term detention of mentally ill people highlighted by cases ASK and MDA in 2019.
• Shannon mentions the need for protection for at-risk adults and families, including children who have lost parents.
• Local authorities are already caring for over 5,000 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children—146% more than in 2014.
• The government will look to negotiate with individual European Union countries if a reciprocal agreement cannot be reached with the EU as a whole.
• Government amendments (a) to (c) were made in lieu of Lords amendment 4B.