Government Response

The Government responded to this petition on Tuesday 20th October 2015

The UK and French Governments have been working together closely for many months to address the situation in northern France, and we are committed to resolving it together.

As part of the UK-France declaration, signed by the Home Secretary and the French Interior Minister on 20 August, our two Governments agreed that there will be increased observation in the camp at Calais to identify those who are especially vulnerable or potential victims of trafficking. A system for transferring those who are especially vulnerable, or potential victims of trafficking, to places of safety and offer those people advice and support will also be put in place.

The Government is also working closely with France and other EU and international partners to improve border security and asylum processing capacity both within the EU and further upstream. The UK, furthermore, is playing a leading role in pushing for action through the EU and the UN to tackle the causes of illegal immigration and the organised trafficking gangs behind it, as well as increasing support and protection for those who need it.

The Government fully supports the use of the Dublin Regulation. The Dublin Regulation is the EU instrument that determines which single State is responsible for examining an asylum claim and is designed to prevent “asylum shopping” where an individual moves between States to seek the most attractive regime of protection, and “refugees in orbit” where no single State permits access to an asylum procedure.

A person who is in genuine need of international protection should not travel through a safe country illegally and then choose where to claim asylum. If we have evidence that an asylum seeker is the responsibility of another European country we can and will seek to return them there under the Dublin Regulation.

The Government has been clear about our position on relocation of refugees within the EU – it is the wrong response and simply moves the problem around. It also risks encouraging migrants to make the dangerous journeys to Europe.

The Government has been leading the way in calling for a comprehensive and coordinated EU-wide response which addresses the root causes of why people are leaving their homes and countries. The Government believes a comprehensive solution to the crisis includes helping the countries where these people come from to reduce the push factors; building stability and creating livelihoods; and going after the criminal gangs and trafficking networks profiting from human misery.

The UK has led the way for a sustainable and effective approach to the migrant situation and at the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 8 October the Home Secretary reiterated that in order for EU Member States to focus their resources on helping those in genuine need, an effective returns system for those not found to be in need of international protection is vital. The Government believes EU proposals on identifying safe countries of origin is a good start to tackling asylum abuse but could go even further and is also keen to explore the development of multi-purpose centres and safe zones outside of Europe to which economic migrants can be returned.

The Government in the mean time continues to work with EU and international partners to find political resolution so that those who have been displaced by crises can eventually return to their homes and livelihood in peace.

Home Office