Did you know that the UK asylum system is run for profit?
We're revealing our Most Wanted, the companies profiting from refugees' misery.
Thread below👇
Refugee Action's Most Wanted are:
Clearsprings, Mears, Serco and Corporate Travel Management (CTM).
These companies are paid billions in public money to run the cruel system that the government has devised.
CLEARSPRINGS READY HOMES
Clearsprings boosted its profits from £4,419,841 to £28,012,487 during the year ending 31 January 2022.
Clearsprings runs Napier, an ex-military barracks being used to house refugees in conditions described as “squalid” by lawyers of the residents.
MEARS
Financial statements list adjusted profits before tax at £35.2 million for year ending December 2022, an increase of 37% over that achieved in 2021.
See for yourself the conditions in some of this accommodation.
SERCO
Serco's 2023 half year results state that revenue increased by 13%, or £294m, to £2,472m (2022: £2,178m).
In 2023 the Home Office confirmed that Serco will run the proposed camp at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire.
CORPORATE TRAVEL MANAGEMENT (CTM)
Corporate Travel Management (CTM) was contracted to run the Bibby Stockholm barge as part of its award of the Bridging Accommodation & Travel Services contract by the UK Home Office, valued at approximately £1.6bn.
The asylum system should be about making people safe, not making rich people richer.
But the asylum industrial complex, that has arisen under this government's cruel approach, is transforming billions in public money into private profit.
We spoke to @NationalWorld about what we think a compassionate, accessible and workable asylum system could look like – and why an approach based on hostility and deterrence is cruel, costly, and won’t stop refugees risking their lives to reach the UK to claim asylum.
Our policy and research manager @_tarapovey told @ImogenHowse that a compassionate system is one where people are believed, welcomed, and treated with dignity - and are able to start rebuilding their lives.
An accessible system is one where people can claim asylum without putting their lives at risk by crossing the Channel. It is completely legal to come to the UK to seek asylum so we have a moral and lawful duty to make it possible.
Here's how we reached the figure of £300 million. 🧮
It's based on national insurance and income tax contributions if half of the 69,593 working-age people waiting more than six months for a decision on their asylum claim found work.
Once able to support themselves, people would no longer need asylum support payments from the government.
So we added that saving onto the final amount as well. The grand total was £308,472,107.
After weeks of dither and delay the Gov's plan to protect people fleeing the war in Ukraine fails to match the need of the moment and the compassion of the public.
In fact, it's a massive downgrade from the UK’s previous support for refugees – and may even put them at risk.🧵
Community sponsorship is an important part of any protection system and a great way for people to show their support – but it can only ever be a drop in the ocean of what's needed.
Current sponsorship schemes take 150 refugees a year in total. 2.5 million Ukrainians have fled.
Ukrainians arriving through this scheme won't be given refugee status, falling short of the protection guarantee they should expect.
This also limits access to benefits which could be essential if they have difficulties with their sponsor.
This clause allows refugees to be treated differently just because of how they travelled to the UK.
Regardless of their need for safety, some refugees will only be given temporary protection and fewer rights than others.
As a result, anyone claiming asylum who has had to pass through another country (I.e. the MAJORITY) will be discriminated against after they are granted refugee status.
They will have no chance of securing right to settlement for at least ten years. Worse still, the UK will repeatedly review their case in the hope of deporting them elsewhere.
Are you finding it politically unrewarding to run an asylum system that keeps people safe? It’s hard! We’ve got the solution for the ambitious politician... BÖRDER KRISÍS!
Build it yourself and see how useful it can be to justify things like an #AntiRefugeeBill. Instructions⬇️
Here’s what you’ll need to get started on your BÖRDER KRISÍS.
You need a big frame for your BÖRDER KRISÍS. Don’t worry that your frame doesn’t fit the facts, the rest of the steps will show you how to make it look like the facts fit your frame.
Remember, when you’re building a BÖRDER KRISÍS – appearances are everything.