UK Home Office separating migrant families under Hostile Environment policy

[Agustarella]

In the Guardian today: 322 children last year separated from their migrant parents, and the numbers are rising, according to the charity Bail for Immigration Detainees. The Home Office itself doesn't even bother to keep records of how many children are separated from their parent or parents. Some of these children are put into the care system.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/aug/05/child-separation-migrant-parents-uk-hostile-environment-trump

With the uncertainty that currently surrounds citizens' rights post-Brexit, do mumsnetters agree that there is a risk that people now exercising Freedom of Movement will be caught up in these Hostile Environment measures? What can we do about it?

Of course, very real risk of windrush 2.0
I've felt for a while that the only options are naturalise or leave the country. I have opted for the latter (have the PR card and just preparing the naturalisation papers now) but I know it's not so easy for everyone.
Not sure what can be done to counter this. The way the home office works it's impossible to feel safe in the long run considering the FOM system was very casual and didn't encourage immigrants to arrange for hard proof of their status.
A practical solution would be for everyone affected to get reallt hot on home admin. Start collating the paperwork you might need (council tax bills & utility, payslips/p60 or other proof of income, insurance, mortgage or tenancy agreements, and proof of marriage and husband's income for SAHMs) so that all documentation is collated and ready to go as much as possible on relatively short notice.
Think about it as if you had to apply for the non-EU ILR and have that file ready in case of changes to the settled rules come into force at some point. Also keep travel receipts -all of them- from now on.
My parents lived in a complicated non EU country for many years and always erred on the side of caution in that respect (ie.kept all paperwork and receipts as listed above).
Not cool if you had FOM before of course.

Sorry meant to say opted for the former !!

I'm also aware that it won't help low income households unfortunately...

So if I've read your post correctly, the Home Office is doing the same as the US regarding separating children from parents and losing the records?

@Quietrebel Thank you, those are really good tips.

@Apileofballyhoo From the article, it seems that the Home Office isn't even keeping records of the number of children separated from their parents. I guess if they don't record something in the first place they can't be accused of losing the records, or be forced by Freedom of Information requests to reveal exact numbers. The stats in the article were provided by a charity that works with migrants.

Starting to sound like Trumps america

Quietrebel, what's wrong with the world?

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/aug/05/child-separation-migrant-parents-uk-hostile-environment-trump

Clicky link

Are you shitting me?! I can't read the article right now, I'm too appalled at the thought of my country doing this to families. I just have to bury my head in the sand a minute and then I'll come back and read it. What is the world coming to.

apileofballyhoo I try to stay positive but my guess is it's fear. Overwhelming fear of global change, of the unknown. On all levels (economics, politics, environmental, cultural) changes seem to be accelerating and populists seize on that to spin a simplified narrative. It's reassuring to identify others as the source of problems and easy to translate into dehumanising policies. That will spread and get worse.
The rise of anti-Semitism is always an indicator that things are bad. Diaspora people are the ultimate 'other', the rootless ones, so without 'clear' allegiance and therefore untrustworthy.
It is very sad we should end up there... again.

I couldn't read all of it, Woah. I only read one woman's story and I feel sick since.

Every parent's worst nightmare.

@Apileofballyhoo Thanks for fixing the link.

Agustarella no problem.

Quietrebel In Ireland, The Department of Education and Skills are currently taking history off the compulsory curriculum for our Junior Certificate, which is what students sit after the first three years in secondary school. It's all so wrong.

Awful stories

How can those immigration officers live with themselves? Did those people who restrained the woman in the first story go back home at the end of the day feeling satisfaction at having done a day's work? "Today I overpowered a woman and forced a terrified a 2 year old into care". Well done you

These measures are not necessary in order to control immigration - it seems that in none of the cases were the adults deported, and the Home Office have been sued. Great job and the person behind this is the country's leader.

The only way this system can operate is if the "other" is seen as not equal to you, not quite human. The papers have been at it for years and succesive governments have been very happy to jump in the bandwagon. I bet many members of the public would have no problem with the stories in the article because they happen to foreigners who by definition must have been up to no good. There should be an outrage over there but there isn't. Xenophobia runs deep through our society these days and it is no better than racism. Ugly. Very ugly.

It's very worrying.

I feel sick reading that article

There are actually 15,000 children kept apart from one parent under immigration rules Theresa May brought in in 2011.

This org documents a lot of the stories.

britcits.blogspot.com/