UK Borders Bill

Will the Minister write to me on a closely related matter—the rate at which supervision of immigration officers, particularly case managers, will be introduced? All that has been said highlights the sensitivity with which case managers must deal with their interviewees. When a woman has, for instance, been raped repeatedly in a culture where it is taboo to talk about sex and has to talk about this for the first time with an interviewer, it is vital that the interviewer is supported. I warmly welcome the attention given by the Government to the workforce in this area and the increased diversity of the workforce and case managers. But there is such horror attached to this work, that one is reminded of the words of TS Eliot, who wrote: "““Humankind cannot bear too much reality””." Some things are just too unbearable to consider and the danger is that a case manager may be led to deny what he is hearing, simply because he cannot bear to consider it himself. Therefore, training is important and perhaps the Minister might write to me about that. It is also essential that these decision makers should have the same supervision that probation officers, social workers and staff in children’s homes receive. I know that this will be costly and it will take time for it to come about, but I would be grateful if the Minister could inform me what the timescale for this change will be. I understand that the Border and Immigration Agency is considering this and I would be grateful to hear any details that the Minister can provide.