Conservative bid to prevent student visa ‘abuse’ on hold after Lords debate

Conservative bids to block asylum routes have been put on hold, after a minister complained they would put the Government at odds with its international obligations.

Baroness Lawlor suggested foreign students who go to university and then “abuse” their visa to seek asylum should have their claim struck down.

And Lord Davies of Gower attempted to disapply the Human Rights Act 1998 for immigration legislation, arguing the 27-year-old law created a “straightjacket” and the country “has lost control of the asylum system”.

But Home Office minister Lord Hanson of Flint warned striking down students’ claims to asylum could leave them “in limbo, with no certainty as to whether they qualify for refugee status, or whether they should be returned to their home country”.

He also told the Lords: “We do not have to withdraw from the ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) or disapply the Human Rights Act to create what I will call meaningful reforms of our current system and processes.”

Baroness Lawlor said she wanted to “prevent the abuse of the system, whereby those entering on the student visa to study on a course in the UK, perhaps or perhaps not in good faith, subsequently make an asylum claim”.

She warned that when students stop paying for classes by dropping out, “the impact of an abandoned place ultimately places strain on the ability of universities to keep going”.

Baroness Lawlor proposed a change to the Government’s Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, so that student visa holders would have two days to make their claim or they would lose their right to become a refugee.

“My amendment would nonetheless allow those desperate to escape imprisonment or worse for their political or religious views to make an asylum claim, provided it was made within two days of arrival, as, for instance, might happen with a Hong Kong person had there not been that scheme for safe and legal entry,” she said.

The minister replied that in addition to leaving students “in limbo”, it risked “benefitting those students who, it may be said, are more likely to have deliberately used the visa system as a way to access the UK’s asylum system”.

Lord Hanson also said that “it is very possible that someone can arrive as a student and indeed find the situation in their home country has changed since their arrival”.

Baroness Lawlor withdrew her proposed amendment, but left open the possibility she could re-introduce a similar proposal at a later stage.

“Unless we crack down quite strictly on people claiming asylum who have no reason other than a desire to stay in this country, and have made it clear subsequently, from the evidence, it’s clear, then we’re not going to tackling this problem which is very grave for our universities, very grave for our student communities, and very grave for our taxpayers,” she added.

Conservative shadow home office minister Lord Davies of Gower proposed a blanket rule for immigration courts and tribunals to “disregard the Human Rights Act 1998”.

He said: “Hundreds of thousands of people have come here claiming to be refugees, far more than politicians before us ever imagined, almost all passing through neighbouring countries which are perfectly safe.”

Lord Davies raised the case of an Albanian man who was able to remain in the UK partly because of his son’s aversion to foreign chicken nuggets.

“Every day we see these kind of cases reported and tens of thousands of illegal immigrants, mainly adult men, take the risk of crossing the Channel in small boats because they know we can’t even remove criminals and terrorists,” he said.

“Indeed, we pay their legal fees to help them stay.”

Warning of an “untenable” situation, Lord Davies later added: “The rights of our people come second to the rights of child abusers and terrorists who hide behind the Act to remain on our shores, to remain a threat to our people, and to remain a source of terror and pain for the people they have already harmed.”

Lord Hanson said: “We’re committed to the ECHR, which underpins international agreements we have with partners, including the Good Friday Agreement and the France returns agreement.”

The minister vowed to “reform our approach to the application of Article 8” – the right to respect for a private and family life – “so that fewer cases are treated as exceptional”.

Lord Davies withdrew his amendment, but vowed to “return” to the issue as the Bill makes its way through Parliament.

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill faces further scrutiny in the Lords before it can become law.