Asylum-Seekers Flock to London After Being Ousted from Belgium

Strategic Insights -

About 400 asylum-seekers, including 140 Kenyans and 260 individuals from the former Yugoslavia, have arrived in London within the past few weeks after being ordered to leave Belgium. This sudden influx has raised concerns, prompting a Home Office spokesman to state that talks are being held with Belgian authorities to address the issue. The asylum-seekers were given notice to quit Belgium within seven days and were informed that they could not remain in the nine Schengen Treaty states that have established a border-free area within the European Union, with Britain being the nearest available option for asylum.

Key Takeaways:

  • 400 asylum-seekers, including 140 Kenyans and 260 individuals from the former Yugoslavia, have arrived in London within the past few weeks.
  • The asylum-seekers were ordered to leave Belgium within seven days and informed that they could not stay in the nine Schengen Treaty states.
  • The Home Office is having talks with Belgian authorities to address the issue, with the goal of preventing future asylum-seekers from being sent to Britain.
  • The EU Dublin Convention stipulates that asylum-seekers should be dealt with in the EU country where they first sought asylum rather than being passed to other states.
  • Britain faced a similar influx of Somali refugees arriving from France on Eurostar last year, and in December, hundreds of Slovak and Czech gypsies arrived in Dover to seek asylum.
  • The Government is preparing a White Paper on immigration and asylum aimed at reducing the backlog of asylum applications.

Statistics:

  • 400 asylum-seekers have arrived in London within the past few weeks.
  • 140 Kenyans and 260 individuals from the former Yugoslavia are among the asylum-seekers.
  • 7 days was the timeframe given to the asylum-seekers to quit Belgium.
  • 9 European Union countries, including Belgium, have established a border-free area within the European Union under the Schengen Treaty.
  • The backlog of asylum applications in Britain is to be addressed through a White Paper on immigration and asylum.

Sources:

  • The Times, Copyright (C) 1998