From the Very Revd Nicholas Coulton
Sir, - The article by Sarah Teather MP on the defects of the
Immigration Bill (Comment, 14 Feb) may
come as a surprise to some members of Anglican congregations, but
not to the many churchpeople around the country who have for a
decade or so been struggling to help those desperate for asylum to
find a way through the inadequacies of the UK justice system, and
the many cruelties perpetrated by the UK Border Agency and its
private-sector contractors.
Ms Teather is one of the few MPs who have wrestled in detail
with the Bill: the Commons Third Reading focus on foreign-born
criminals meant that much of the Bill was not considered there.
She correctly spells out many of the flaws in this badly drafted
Bill, which, with its limitations on access to housing, health
care, bank accounts, and driving licences, as the Bishop of
Leicester, the Rt Revd Tim Stevens, said at its Second Reading in
the Lords, will not just police a border around our country, but
will erect many new boundaries within our society,
institutionalising social exclusion in law.
Whether or not the Immigration Bill is amended, there will
remain much for Christians to care about.
Members of all Churches who are concerned for refugees and those
seeking sanctuary will be gathering in Sheffield on Saturday 5
April for the annual conference of the Churches' Refugee Network, a
national ecumenical group working under the auspices of Churches
Together in Britain and Ireland.
The proposed new chair for CRN is the Bishop of Croydon, the Rt
Revd Jonathan Clark, in whose episcopal area is Lunar House, the
immigration HQ of UKBA. The title of the conference, "Under the
Radar: What Room for Refugees?" points to the hotly debated topic
that immigration is becoming in the run-up to May's Euro-elections,
but there will also be detailed workshops on destitution, housing,
health, campaigning, and legal matters.
The keynote speakers are Dr Richard Vautrey, deputy chair of the
BMA GP Committee, and Ruth Grove-White, policy director of the
Migrants' Rights Network. Details and booking form are available
from wendy.cooper@urc.org.uk. All are welcome, especially refugees
and asylum-seekers.
NICHOLAS COULTON
The Churches' Refugee Network
123 Merewood Avenue
Oxford OX3 8EQ