| answer text |
<p>The Government is committed to a fair and humane immigration policy which welcomes
and celebrates people here legally, and which distinguishes effectively between those
with lawful status and those here illegally.</p><p>In common with other comparable
countries, the UK has in place a framework of laws, policies and administrative arrangements,
ensuring access to work benefits and services is permitted for those with the right
access to them. The term “hostile environment” is not used to describe these policies
and does not reflect our values. Key measures were the subject of public consultations
and/or impact assessments before they were introduced. These policies already incorporate
important safeguards, including the ability to exercise discretion where there are
genuine barriers to persons leaving the UK or there are exceptional compassionate
factors.</p><p>We are considering further options to evaluate the impact of controls
on work, benefits and services.</p><p>My Rt hon Friend, the Home Secretary has already
announced that he will review the structures and processes of the immigration system
to ensure that we can deliver a future system in a way that is fair and humane. <br>We
are considering the form and timing of the review, but it will need to build on the
lessons learnt from the Lessons Learned review, which is be-ing led by Wendy Williams
and is seeking to establish how members of the Windrush generation became entangled
with immigration measures designed to tackle illegal immigration.</p>
|
|
