EU nationals deportation letters an 'unfortunate error', says May

[webfact]

EU nationals deportation letters an 'unfortunate error', says May

Mattha Busby

 

Home Office mistakenly sent up to 100 letters to EU citizens telling them to leave UK or face removal

 

Theresa May admitted the Home Office made an “unfortunate error” when it mistakenly sent up to 100 letters to EU nationals living in the UK ordering them to leave the country or face deportation.

 

The prime minister was forced into the statement after it emerged that a Finnish academic working in London had highlighted the warning letter she had received, which told her to leave the UK or risk being detained.

 

Although Eva Johanna Holmberg has lived in the UK with her British husband for most of the last decade, the correspondence from the Home Office said that if she did not leave the country of her own accord the department would give “directions for [her] removal”. It added that she was “a person liable to be detained under the Immigration Act”.

 

Full story: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/aug/23/home-office-apologises-for-letters-threatening-to-deport-eu-nationals

 

-- The Guardian 2017-08-24

[kotsak]

Someone jumped the gun.. 

[steve187]

just the start of things to come, maybe could be on the horizon 

[StayinThailand2much]

12 minutes ago, steve187 said:

just the start of things to come, maybe could be on the horizon 

Theresa May must have been quite upset that the Home Office sent out the letters too early, while the UK was still in negotiation with the EU.

 

If you are Jewish, or a member of any other minority in Britain, NOW is the time to leave... Don't wait till Theresa grows a Charlie Chaplin moustache.

 

And for the people who voted to 'leave' because of a few job seekers from Poland and Bulgaria - who do you think will replace these cheap workers in the future? That's right - (more) immigrants from Nigeria, Guinea, Sudan, Pakistan...

Edited August 24, 2017 by StayinThailand2much

[canopus1969]

28 minutes ago, steve187 said:

just the start of things to come, maybe could be on the horizon 

Let's hope so  

[dick dasterdly]

How on earth could this be an 'unfortunate error'?

 

This is politics at its worst....

[ExpatOilWorker]

Sound like the kids running the UK have no idea what they are doing now that the EU no longer is holding their hand.

Edited August 24, 2017 by ExpatOilWorker

[dick dasterdly]

Just now, ExpatOilWorker said:

Sound like the kids running the UK have no idea what they are doing now that the EU no longer is holding their hand.

Rather that the UK bureaucrats are doing anything and everything possible to garner support for their preferred option - remain......

[Grouse]

Are Boris and the Cons idiots or just nasty?

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/refugee-crisis-libya-latest-mediterranean-sea-boris-johnson-vows-uk-stop-illegal-migrants-isis-gna-a7909216.html

 

And here's Boris's song

 

 

Edited August 24, 2017 by Grouse

[terryw]

Maybe they were testing the Home Office Immigration IT systems to make sure they are ready for March 2019 

[transam]

Were they sent to prisons....?

[Caps]

Could these have been sent out deliberately by a remoaner wanting to keep Brexit on the rocky path? Knowing that doing so would put it straight into the hands of the press to spread more doom and gloom 

Edited August 24, 2017 by Caps

[BuaBS]

It's about time they deported regular euro's to make room for some more muslims.

[jesimps]

2 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

Theresa May must have been quite upset that the Home Office sent out the letters too early, while the UK was still in negotiation with the EU.

 

If you are Jewish, or a member of any other minority in Britain, NOW is the time to leave... Don't wait till Theresa grows a Charlie Chaplin moustache.

 

And for the people who voted to 'leave' because of a few job seekers from Poland and Bulgaria - who do you think will replace these cheap workers in the future? That's right - (more) immigrants from Nigeria, Guinea, Sudan, Pakistan...

Civil servants make mistakes. This was a mistake. The PM, no less, has apologised. This is a non-story. Move along.

 

[rockingrobin]

36 minutes ago, jesimps said:

Civil servants make mistakes. This was a mistake. The PM, no less, has apologised. This is a non-story. Move along.

 

This was not an individual case  , but up to 100 letters, 

[Jonnapat]

3 hours ago, dick dasterdly said:

How on earth could this be an 'unfortunate error'?

 

This is politics at its worst....

It has been politics at it's worst for some time now and it's not likely to end any time soon 

[7by7]

4 hours ago, canopus1969 said:

4 hours ago, steve187 said:

just the start of things to come, maybe could be on the horizon 

Let's hope so  

Canopus1969, Ms Holmberg is married to a British citizen. Are you seriously hoping that all foreign spouses of British citizens be deported? Does that hope include the Thai wives of many members of this forum?

 

How about my wife, who was naturalised as British over 10 years ago and so has dual Thai/British nationality?

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, jesimps said:

Civil servants make mistakes. This was a mistake. The PM, no less, has apologised. This is a non-story. Move along.

 

I don't believe that. I rather agree with Caps that this was deliberately done by someone.

[hugh2121]

4 hours ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

Sound like the kids running the UK have no idea what they are doing now that the EU no longer is holding their hand.

 

Picked up an infection from Trump(er)

[dunroaming]

3 hours ago, jesimps said:

Civil servants make mistakes. This was a mistake. The PM, no less, has apologised. This is a non-story. Move along.

 

Yes this is a mistake and indicative of May's current performance.  Still it makes a change from backtracking on her Brexit pledges.

[soalbundy]

4 hours ago, jesimps said:

Civil servants make mistakes. This was a mistake. The PM, no less, has apologised. This is a non-story. Move along.

 

A mistake, like brexit then

[Richard W]

5 hours ago, 7by7 said:

How about my wife, who was naturalised as British over 10 years ago and so has dual Thai/British nationality?

She has a basis of stay.

 

However, if Dr Holmberg were not a worker, the HO action would be entirely proper.  There are lot of unlawfully resident EEA nationals swanning around the UK as though they had a right to live with their working British spouse.

Edited August 24, 2017 by Richard W

[nontabury]

23 hours ago, dick dasterdly said:

How on earth could this be an 'unfortunate error'?

 

This is politics at its worst....

Maybe,just maybe it was not sent out by mistake. Could a remoaner at the Home Office,have had a hand in this act.

[Richard W]

Has the Home Office admitted that the initial refusal of a residence certificate was wrong given the actual situation?

[Richard W]

On 25/08/2017 at 7:36 AM, nontabury said:

Maybe,just maybe it was not sent out by mistake. Could a remoaner at the Home Office,have had a hand in this act.

Another thought has occurred to me.  Could the removal be part of a policy of discouraging difficult and therefore time-consuming decisions?  If word gets out that a refused application will lead to attempted removal, those with complicated situations might just choose to wait until the offered simple residence-based system comes into force.

 

This is also consistent with a tendency to expel resident  EEA nationals who attempt to marry overstayers they are cohabiting with.  I don't know how much the expulsions are succeeding; I know of one German student (link prohibited) who was prevented from re-entering the UK while awaiting her appeal hearing after her Albanian boyfriend was removed as a result of their attempting to marry in the UK.