Clause 36 - Young asylum-seeker
Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Bill
11:30 am
Mr Richard Allan (Sheffield, Hallam, Liberal Democrat)
I beg to move amendment No. 260, in page 20, line 1, at end add—
'(2) The financial support made available as a result of subsection (1) shall be paid in advance and support for children over 16 shall be set at the same level as those for children under 16'.
We have debated the support for young asylum seekers many times in discussing special grant reports for local authorities, which is how the system has worked to date, and there are general concerns about that. The amendment would make equivalent the payment levels for those who are under 16 and those who are 16 and 17. We have often discussed the levels
at which the grants were set, and the rate was significantly higher for those under 16, who have cost the local authority up to £400 a week. The local authority still has responsibility for those individuals. There has been a lower rate for those aged 16 and 17, although they are still assessed as children.
There is a good reason for funding 16 and 17-year-olds at a rate equivalent to that for those under 16: at the current rate, it is difficult for local authorities to provide individuals in the older age group with the entire package. We understand that the new system will involve direct payment. Quite a significant number of individuals enter the system at that age.
I know that questions have been raised about the validity of dates of birth and so on, but it seems reasonable to suggest that unaccompanied individuals of that age will seek asylum. They may be able to travel more independently, and the problems from which asylum claims result often affect young men in that age group. In military and conflict situations, young men are frequently the target. Those individuals will be most caught up in such a situation, whether a Government agency is removing them from communities or anyone else is seeking to sign them up to a military force. There is a pattern of people of that age seeking asylum, and local authorities have a particular duty and responsibility to care for them, so the funding level should be set appropriately for the individuals affected. I look forward to hearing the Minister's response on the logic of separating out the payments and the levels to be set under the new system of direct payment as opposed to the special grant support system of the past.