Immigration news

UK Home Secretary, David Blunkett, is still being investigated onallegations of fast tracking a visa application for his ex-lover'snanny. The finding of the investigation is supposed to be published onDec. 21, but recent allegations made by the daily Sun newspaper maycause a delay.

Blunkett maintains his innocence and says he has had nothing to do with the nanny's application. Thereis also the probe by the Commons watchdog Sir Philip Mawer into thefact that Blunkett gave official rail warrants intended only for wivesto his former lover>

Processing times for work permits have not changed much over the last month. A work permit application in the UK takes up to five days. Applicants under the Highly Skilled Migrant Program (HSMP) can expect to wait the longest, maybe even as long as 26 weeks.

If you are in the UK already on a work permit or under HSMP, you will probably also have to submit a Leave to Remain application which could take up to 13 more weeks to process.

Conservative Party leader Michael Howard recently announced that, if the Tories return to power, there will be a major overhaul of British immigration policy, including an annual ceiling on immigration and withdrawal from the 1951 UN Convention on the Status of Refugees.

"We are a stronger and more successful country because of the immigrant communities that have settled here. But we cannot continue to allow unlimited immigration into the United Kingdom indefinitely. Immigration needs to be controlled and it needs to be fair," Howard said.

The New Zealand government is set on improving conditions for the increased numbers of immigrants landing on the nation's shores. Speaking at a function earlier this month, Ethnic Affairs Minister Chris Carter said the government is willing to open its wallet and make sure immigrants are given access to the same services and support as the country's own citizens.

A homosexual Nigerian man who fled his native country last year andwas held for 11 months while he awaited asylum in the United States haswon the right to stay. The Nigerian fled to America after an angry mobmurdered his second partner upon discovering that the two men wereromantically involved.

He arrived in New York withoutimmigration documents and was taken into custody by Immigration andCustoms Enforcement. The gay advocacy group Immigration Equality soonmet with the refugee and secured pro-bono legal representation for him.

Ron Noble, head of Interpol, recently spoke to a House ofLords committee in London and he did not shy away from sharing histhoughts on shortcomings in UK passport control at the borders.

Noble said he wasn't even asked for his passport number when entering the UK. Something he sees as a weakness in the system.

"It'sbeen proven in every single terrorist incident that a fraudulentpassport has been used," Noble told the committee adding Interpol wouldallow the UK to download all of its stolen passport numbers as atemporary solution.