My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Neuberger, who has added her name to the amendment in the name of my noble friend Lady Lister of Burtersett.
The earlier debate on the clause was illuminating and displayed this House at its very best. The speeches and interventions on all sides sought to give a voice to those who are often not heard—the voiceless, the vulnerable and the persecuted. I will not rehearse the arguments that were put before your Lordships during the debate on the previous group but I echo this: it is our duty to stand in the shoes of others and imagine. I revisit that often when dealing with subjects such as those that we are dealing with today, but never more so than when we are dealing with those who seek refuge and asylum.
I am particularly grateful for the number of briefings that I have received, in particular for an online briefing that I managed to attend with others, including the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Durham, who referred to this earlier. I thank Stonewall, Rainbow Migration, Safe Passage and others who have expressed their concern about the negative consequences for LGBTQI asylum seekers.
This probing amendment is extremely important. I am concerned, as are others, that the “without delay” criterion would affect large numbers of traumatised people, including, as my noble friend Lady Lister said, survivors of gender-based abuse and people who have fled persecution based on their sexual orientation and who are unable to claim promptly, as well as other vulnerable groups and the individuals who make up those groups. At the moment, the Bill does not provide any exceptions to the “without delay” conditions. Therefore, this amendment, to which I am proud to have added my name, seeks to ascertain whether and to what extent certain vulnerable groups would be affected by the “without delay” condition. Indeed, the Minister probably feels that she has already referred to this to some extent in her earlier contribution.
The amendment seeks to protect refugees with specific histories or characteristics from the adverse effects of Clause 11. The amendment rightly highlights personal characteristics that are relevant to why many refugees are not able to comply with the implicit demand underpinning Clause 11 and Clause 36, to which it is connected. I am grateful to the noble and learned Lord, Lord Etherton, who made the case earlier for the inclusion of protected characteristics in relation to those cited in the Equality Act.
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It is stated that asylum claims must be made by those coming directly to this country and presenting their claim immediately but, as we heard in the previous
debate, that demand is made especially improper because the UK makes no visa available for anyone to come to this country for the purpose of claiming asylum here, whatever the strength of their family or other connections to the UK may be, and refuses to consider any claim for asylum unless it is made in the UK. To claim asylum in the UK, someone must therefore get here first of all; in the great majority of cases, people take unsafe routes and are dependent on smuggling gangs—or, as I experienced in testimony that the right reverend Prelate was also privileged to hear from a young Pakistani man who had done so, make an initial false claim in order to get here to make a claim for asylum.
I turn to the evidence presented by Rainbow Migration and Safe Passage. The introduction of a punitive regime around late claims will penalise asylum seekers who do not come forward straight away as LGBT+. However, many claimants do not know that they can seek asylum on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. People who have been deeply closeted in their home country are often unwilling, or indeed find it hard, to proffer this information, especially because they fear that it may make their life harder if they are returned home. The Home Office and the investigation process are not environments that make confession comfortable or easy; I have heard that in personal testimony from many.
Presentations of sexuality or gender identity can vary significantly from what the Home Office or people in the UK typically understand. Some people may simply not know the right language but, sadly, the Home Office presumes that failures of language are indicative of deceit. However, that can be resolved through appropriate cultural sensitivity training, which can be as simple as awareness of distinctive cultural norms. I look forward to hearing from the Minister about this because there is Home Office training in the asylum training school that currently deals in part with LGBTQI issues. However, as I have said, Stonewall and other LGBT organisations have expressed serious concerns about this clause in particular and the Bill in general.
It must also be remembered that, for someone fleeing persecution, collecting evidence is not their first priority. For someone who is worried about persecution, activities that garner evidence showing their status as an LGBTQI person are more of a threat. More than that, there are structural disparities. If you are poor, you are less likely to go on dates, own a camera or have the kind of privacy that would allow you to have a relationship or gather evidence from it. I would like to hear from the Minister in relation to situations such as that. Equally, people are not always reliably or properly informed; they do not know about the organisations that can help them. Indeed, even now, there is always a concern that living out and open, even in the UK, could affect their relationships back home and their ability to return.
Sadly, for those and many other reasons, Clause 11 will inflict greater harm and injustice. I look forward to clarification from the Minister.