UK to ignore EU directive on Asylum Detentions

The Guardian – Home Office ministers are to opt out of a European directive which lays down minimum standards for the treatment of asylum claims because it would mean abandoning a fast-track process that leads to hundreds of asylum seekers being detained every year.

The decision has been criticised by immigration lawyers and peers who believe the detention of asylum seekers at Yarl’s Wood and Harmondsworth removal centres “under the detained fast-track” procedure leads to rushed and unfair decisions because there is no time to gather evidence.

The fast-track asylum procedure was introduced in 2003 and involves immigration officers making an initial decision within two weeks while the asylum seeker is in detention.

Read more