UK Immigration News

The Home Office, the government department responsible for policing immigration in the UK, has been accused of racism after immigration officers at several train and underground stations in London were seen 'stopping and questioning every non-white person' about their right to remain in the country.

The operations occurred on Thursday 1st August 2013 at Kensal Green and Cricklewood tube stations in north-west London and at Walthamstow and Stratford tube stations in east London.

Baroness Valentine, the chief executive of London business association London First, has criticised the UK government's 'ill-considered' immigration policy.

Baroness Valentine wrote a piece for the free London newspaper City AM on 1st August 2013, in which she severely criticised the Coalition government after it announced a plan to introduce security bonds for some international visitors.

The BBC has revealed that the UK's Home Office has identified 115 suspected war criminals who have been present in the UK in the last two years in various visa categories including indefinite leave to remain. 99 of these have lived in the UK for some time, sometimes for many years, and have applied for indefinite leave to remain in the UK or for citizenship.

Badar Azim, a footman at Buckingham Palace who helped with the announcement of the birth of the new-born Prince George has left the UK and returned to his native India because he did not qualify for a Tier 2 (General) skilled worker visa.

On 22nd July 2013, Badar was seen on television, placing an announcement of the birth of the UK's new prince on a golden easel outside Buckingham Palace. Prince George is the first son of Prince William and his wife Katherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. George is now third in line to the British throne.

A spokesman for the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has said that a UK government plan to require Indian nationals applying for UK visas to pay security bonds are 'a matter of concern'.

From November, some applicants for UK visas from six 'high risk' countries will be required to pay the bonds if the Home Office believes that they are likely to overstay their visa. The maximum bond payment will be £3,000. The money must be paid before a visa is issued and will only be repaid once the visa holder has left the country.

Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps made a speech on 31st July 2013 which signals that the Conservatives intend to fight the next election as a party that is tough on immigration.

The UK now has fixed term parliaments and so the parties know that the next election will be held in June 2015. While this is still nearly two years away, commentators say that Mr Shapps's speech can be seen as 'a drawing of battle lines for the election.