UK Borders Bill

My Lords, this has been a particularly striking section of this debate. Among the many remarkable speeches, I felt especially privileged to hear the speech made by the noble Earl. I hope very much that the Government will accept these amendments, particularly Amendment No. 5. I shall make three observations on what the amendment suggests to me. I hope that the first will not undermine the Government’s preparedness to accept it. The language of, "““to safeguard and promote the welfare of children””," must include the agency’s thinking as it prepares, as it sometimes does, with the courts to argue for the deportation of children as well as adults to places to which people should not be deported. I shall say no more than that, but I have had a good deal of experience this year of that set of questions, particularly in relation to the DRC. Secondly, I wonder about the language of, "““an individual who is less than 18 years old””." I hope that it is not mistaken to mention the number, as I have heard and read, of plausible stories of agencies seeking to age children in ways by means that are not fully usable or responsible and even agencies—social services as well as perhaps the Home Office—which have aged children as more than 18 years old when they are less than 18 years old by most likely estimates. Thirdly, of course there has to be a cut-off point, which, under the Children Act, is 18 years old. I also have evidence of young people who, straight after their 18th birthday, are taken in and proposals are made to deport them to places where, because they have been entirely brought up in this country, they do not speak the language and deportation would be entirely unsuitable. There is also a question of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children which cannot stop the day after their 18th birthday.