Asylum lawyers back detention ruling

Immigration practitioners welcomed last week's High Court ruling that detention of asylum seekers in reception centres was unlawful under the Human Rights Act, and rejected predictions of an ensuing flood of compensation claims.Elspeth Guild, chairwoman of the European sub-committee of the Immigration Law Practitioners Association, said the decision was 'tremendous', but held that a huge number of compensation claims from asylum seekers would be 'extremely unlikely'.

She said: 'There may be one or two claims, depending on how outrageously the court decides the state has acted.'Maria Fernandes, chairwoman of the Law Society's immigration law committee, also welcomed the decision, and 'very much' doubted that compensation claims would be forthcoming: 'Rather than a rash of claims, the repercussions of this verdict will be more that the whole issue of detention legislation will have to be carefully reviewed.'Ms Guild also went on to criticise the 'disgraceful' attitudes of the English and French governments, who she claimed are leaving asylum seekers with no protection, and private companies liable for fines if asylum seekers are found crossing the Channel Tunnel on their carriers.

'Eurotunnel's decision at the end of August to start legal action to avoid these fines highlights the problem,' she said.

'The two governments are using private companies as scapegoats for their own unwillingness to take responsibility for these people.'Meanwhile, the Home Office's controversial proposed reduction of the fast-track immigration service for businesses ([2001] Gazette, 31 August, 6), has been shelved because of adverse publicity and representations by businesses and lawyers.

Victoria MacCallum