PIW 16
National Assembly for Wales
Communities, Equality and Local Government Committee
Inquiry into: Poverty in Wales:
Strand 1
Response from: British Red Cross
British Red Cross in Wales’ response to the Communities,
Equality and Local Government Committee Inquiry into Poverty in
Wales
Contact: Cathrin Manning, policy
and public affairs officer cmanning@redcross.org.uk
/
07739823254
This response addresses two of
the three terms of reference for Strand 1 Poverty and
Inequality:
-
The impacts of
poverty, particularly destitution and extreme poverty, on different
groups of people.
-
How legislation,
policy and budgets targeted at tackling poverty and reducing
inequality are co-ordinated and priorities across the Welsh
Government.
- The British Red Cross helps
millions of people in the UK and around the world to prepare for,
respond to and recover from emergencies, disasters and
conflicts. We
are part of the global Red Cross and Red Crescent humanitarian
network and we refuse to ignore people in crisis. We support more
than 90.000 people every year in Wales. Through our work in Wales
we are faced with extreme cases of poverty and destitution
everyday, particularly amongst asylum seekers living within the
dispersal areas of Wales. The British Red Cross provides short-term
crisis support to asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who find
themselves destitute, many of whom come to us as a last resort,
having exhausted all alternatives, with nowhere else to turn. We
feel strongly that the depth of suffering and humanitarian need
experienced by those living in Wales, who come to Britain to seek
sanctuary, needs to form part of this committee
inquiry.
- The British Red Cross defines
someone who is destitute as:
“ A person who
is not accessing public funds, is living in extreme poverty and is
unable to meet basic needs, e.g. income, food, shelter, healthcare,
and who is forced to rely on irregular support from family,
friends, charities or illegal working to survive.”
- We support a government’s
right to control its borders, and to remove asylum seekers who have
not been granted protection but stand-by the principle that
destitution should not be an outcome of the asylum process.
We also acknowledge
that immigration is a non-devolved matter but also
celebrate that Wales, as stated in the Programme for Government is
a country which is committed to creating a fair society free from discrimination, harassment and
victimisation with cohesive and inclusive
communities and
reducing poverty, especially persistent poverty amongst some
of our poorest people and communities, and reducing the likelihood
that people will become poor (Programme for Government).
The Welsh Government has demonstrated this resolve by
enabling asylum seekers, living in Wales, access to primary and
secondary healthcare. However, we feel that Wales can do more to
address the severe suffering of these individuals who find
themselves destitute living within our communities.
- We provide support to asylum
seekers in Wales, many of whom are families, who find themselves
destitute for a range of reasons. These include people seeking
asylum and those who have had their asylum claim rejected and have
not returned home or are too frightened to return home. Many failed
asylum seekers choose to remain in the UK living a life of
destitution over returning to their home country, living with no or
very limited access to support from the UK Governement. Although
asylum seekers are entitled to limited state support, as are failed
asylum seekers if they are destitute and taking steps to leave the
UK, this amounts to only 50 per cent of standard income support.
Many of those who have had their claim rejected and are eligible
for Section 4 support experience delays in receiving it or
difficulty accessing it leaving them with nothing. Others feel
unable to apply for Section 4 support as they fear for their safety
if they return to their country of origin.
Unable to work, cope
with or access the limited income they are entitled to from the UK
Government, many asylum seekers become reliant on the help of
friends and support from faith groups and charities. In many cases
they experience overcrowded living conditions, street homelessness,
physical and mental illnesses and malnourishment.
- We operate three clinics in
Newport, Swansea and Cardiff, where we provide small amounts of
money or vouchers and clothing to asylum seekers and failed asylum
seekers who are destitute, a maximum of £10 a week per
individual for up to 12 weeks. Our destitution support is funded by
British Red Cross charitable funds and amounts to £12,000 per
year in Wales. Unfortunately, as we rely on using our own funding,
the amount is limited and, therefore, intended to support asylum
seekers and failed asylum seekers who have no recourse to public
funds.
However, our clinics
are regularly attended by refugees who have been granted status but
due to delays in the system they are often left for long periods
without any state support.
We have also forged
strong links with local foodbanks and distribute growing numbers of
vouchers directly.
- Currently, we are relying on
British Red Cross charitable funds to support these individuals
living in Wales who are unable to buy even the most basic of items
to live, when funding and public donations are becoming more and
more challenging to secure. In Northern Ireland the Stormont
Executive has established a crisis fund for migrants, refugees, and
asylum seekers. The fund will provide a small amount of money for
those who have issues with benefits, unemployment, have suffered
family breakdown or domestic violence. The fund follows the success
of a short pilot project, which supported 1,252 people, in 2012 and
looked at whether small amounts of money could provide a
significant bridge to allow people to get back on their
feet.
- We call on the Communities,
Equality and Local Government Committee, through this inquiry, to
examine the dire humanitarian situation that many asylum seekers
and refugees experience on a daily basis in Wales. We ask that the
committee consider what else the Welsh Government can do to support
asylum seekers and refugees living in Wales who find themselves
destitute with no or very limited money to support themselves or
their families. We would willingly work with the committee to
examine this area of destitution further.
- The following case studies are
from our destitution support services:
Case study
1
Mary* escaped Uganda
after suffering sexual and physical abuse from her father and other
members of the community. On seeking asylum in the UK her claim was
refused and her support was cut. She begged for food from friends
and received a weekly food parcel from a refugee organisation.
After four years, Mary was detained when immigration officials
raided a house she was staying in. It came to light that there had
been a mix up by the Home office with Mary’s case, which they
later admitted. Her case is still waiting to be
resolved.
Case study
2
Adam*, a University
student in Sudan, fled when problems broke out in Darfur and he was
detained and tortured after being accused of inciting fellow
students. Adam applied for asylum in the UK but was refused after a
year. He now lives in Cardiff and spends his days searching for
food by visiting different people he knows. He has no income at
all, no regular food or shelter. Adam really wants to support
himself and tries to occupy himself by going to language classes
and reading at the library. We have only been able to support Adam
in a limited way by providing him with a £10 food voucher
every week, and clothes and toiletries.
Case Study
3
Ching Lan* along
with her two very young children from China were granted refugee
status and consequently evicted from their NASS accommodation and
rehoused by the council in Swansea. However, the family were not
yet receiving any state financial support and had no money to buy
food or essentials. We helped her to make a National Insurance
application, together with job seekers allowance, child benefit and
child tax credit. Ching Lan was required to sign on at the job
centre meaning a 12 mile walk with her two small children. We were
able to speak to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) who
agreed that she could sign on at her local post office. She still
had to wait a further four days before she received state
support.
Case study
4
Dhari, a 63 year old
gentleman from Kuwait was granted leave to remain in the UK and now
lives in Swansea. He was receiving no financial support and was
unable to support himself with even the basics to survive. He came
to us for help in December 2013 and we were still struggling to
secure any payments from the DWP by March.
For further
information about the difficulties faced by new refugees please
read the British Red Cross report ‘The Move-on Period: An
Ordeal for New Refugees (2014)
www.redcross.org.uk/moveonreport
*Names have been changed to protect the identities of these
individuals.