The Times (of London) reported last week that under a new Home Office immigration guidance, immigrants to Britain can not be denied entry to the country solely based on their past illegal immigration history.  Previously, many civil servants claimed that Hungarian and Bulgarian immigrants entered Britain under the entrepreneurial scheme of claiming to have intentions of setting up a private business.  However, entry clearance officers now believe that nine out of ten of these migrants falsely claimed these intentions.

Under the new guidance all migrants claiming this entrepreneurial status must prove that they have the skill necessary to succeed in this intention.  The migrants must do such things as prove they can speak English and provide evidence of bank statements.  Furthermore, these migrants must also give detailed account of their business plans and be able to demonstrate that they understand the commitment of becoming a self-employed businessperson.

As for immigration officers, the new guidance states officers may use an immigrant’s past history when considering an application, however, they must also acknowledge the immigrant’s commitment to their entrepreneurial status of entering the country before passing their judgment.

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The Sydney Morning Herald reported this week that the cases of 42 Iraqi refugees, eight of which are children, will be reassessed due to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees receiving new information about the state of Iraq as it transforms into a sovereign nation. 

For the 42 Iraqi refugees, past judgment ruled that the refugees were currently of no need of the protection the refugee status would grant.  27 are Iraqi nationals being held on the island of Nauru in the Pacific Ocean.  The other fifteen Iraqi refugees to have their cases reassessed are being held on the mainland of Australia.

Senator Vanstone of Australia stated that before considering the fact that Australia took on average 13,000 people claiming humanitarian and refugee status each year, the government had not been interested in processing the refugee claims of the 27 Iraqis in Nauru.