The Conservative Government plans to send asylum seekers to have their claims processed in Rwanda. Liberal Democrats have campaigned for years, often with colleagues in other parties and alongside NGOs, for a fair, efficient and less harmful asylum system.
We are disgusted by this Government's inhumane treatment of people whose right to seek sanctuary in this country had been accepted even by its own stringent rules. It is not, and never has been, illegal to claim asylum. The 1951 Refugee Convention sets out the rights individuals with a well-founded fear of persecution to claim asylum and the legal obligations of countries (including the UK to protect them) - and that right is not conditional on how the person arrives in the country
Wendy Chamberlain Liberal Democrat MP for NE Fife says earlier today "The way to stop dangerous Channel crossings is to provide safe and legal routes for asylum seekers to come to the UK, not sending people thousands of miles away to a country with a poor human rights record."
A member of LD4SOS and a local Councillor has asked us to publicise this petition to ensure households housing refugees do not lose the 25% single person discount.
The Government has said that council tax discounts will not be affected if someone sponsors and host a Ukrainian household in their home, but refugees have not been added to the list of people disregarded for the purpose of council tax, so it is not clear how this will be achieved.
We understand that the House of Commons will be debating the House of Lords amendments on 26 and 27 April. There is still a chance that some of the Government inhumane proposals can be defeated as the recent significant setback to the Government in the House of Lords gives us another opportunity to press our MPs to represent their constituents and vote for the priority amendments.
