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BIRCH Network

@birchnetwork

BIRCH Network is a volunteer led charity working to harness the enthusiasm of local people to offer friendship and hospitality to people seeking sanctuary www.birchnetwork.org

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Latest posts by BIRCH Network @birchnetwork

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They call it “earned settlement.”

We call it a hostile environment with a new name.

📍 Parliament Square
🗓 11 March | 3PM

Lobby inside. Rally outside.

Settlement is a right.

Join us. Stand with migrant workers, refugees and families.

#SettlementIsARight #DropEarnedSettlement #WeAreHereToStay

02.03.2026 15:39 👍 2 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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Home Office may forcibly remove child asylum seekers from UK in handcuffs Move is part of scheme to target families for expedited voluntary removals before enforced removal proceedings

"Humane". "Compassionate". "Fair".

Just a few of the words the Government has used this week to describe its new asylum rules.

This gaslighting won't work. Most people understand that locking up & forcibly deporting children is the opposite of humanity.

06.03.2026 16:44 👍 2 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
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Council unlawfully refused to reconsider Afghan asylum seeker’s age.

The Claimant was represented by Bhatia Best Solicitors and Michael Spencer of Doughty Street Chambers.

➡️ www.doughtystreet.co.uk/news/council...

06.03.2026 14:07 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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Home Office may forcibly remove child asylum seekers from UK in handcuffs Move is part of scheme to target families for expedited voluntary removals before enforced removal proceedings

This government will stop at nothing to win far-right votes.

These are CHILDREN who've seen bombs destroy their homes and loved ones die. They deserve safety - nothing less.

This disgusting policy would stain our country's conscience forever.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

06.03.2026 14:12 👍 4 🔁 7 💬 0 📌 0
What are Shabana Mahmood’s changes to the asylum system?

What are Shabana Mahmood’s changes to the asylum system?

🚨Inhumane, definitely
🚨Illegal, quite possibly
🚨Ignorant, absolutely
🚨Counterproductive, unarguably
🚨Inconsistent with Labour's claims to be "progress, most certainly
🚨Costly, without a doubt
🚨Risking lives, one hundred percent

That should answer it.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

05.03.2026 21:07 👍 79 🔁 21 💬 1 📌 0
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Student and work visa bans imposed on some countries to prevent asylum claims - Free Movement The Home Office has announced it will cease issuing study visas to nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan and work visas for Afghans. The

In case you missed it: Student and work visa bans imposed on some countries to prevent asylum claims | Colin Yeo

05.03.2026 16:02 👍 0 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

Our Policy Officer Rivka appeared on Talk to remind listeners that there are human beings impacted by this barrage of hostility.

05.03.2026 15:01 👍 3 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 0
Helen Bamber Foundation’s response to the government’s announcement on asylum support | Helen Bamber

Home Secretary’s announcement that asylum support would be revoked for those who “have the ability to support themselves” risks pushing people who simply cannot work towards homelessness, poverty & losing access to legal aid.

Our response: www.helenbamber.org/resources/la...

05.03.2026 16:17 👍 1 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0
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Labour sets out migrant boat plan in bid to avoid 'Nigel Farage nightmare' In a landmark speech Shabana Mahmood insisted failure to get a grip of the migration system will mean the hard right - referencing Nigel Farage - will get their chance to try

The government's fresh wave of asylum policy proposals are incoherent and cruel.

They risk making our already brutal asylum system impossible to survive, while recreating measures that already exist and failing to establish genuine routes to safety.

www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

05.03.2026 16:44 👍 5 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0
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Shabana Mahmood accused of mimicking Trump as she announces asylum plans Home secretary’s proposals to overhaul immigration system include end to permanent refugee status

The Home Secretary has made claims which are not true regarding migrants to push policies which will devastate lives, while increasing exploitation and people forced into becoming undocumented. These are not policies of "fairness", but instead of discrimination.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

05.03.2026 16:49 👍 43 🔁 24 💬 0 📌 1
Dear Shabana,
I notice today that you referred to me in your speech on immigration at the IPPR think tank.
You said: “A party leader should not be on the beaches of France encouraging people to
make a perilous crossing on small boats.”
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised especially after the hateful Labour campaign in Gorton
and Denton, but this is just the latest in a string of lies peddled by a discredited Government
who intentionally fan the flames of racism and division.
When I went to Calais, I was not there to encourage people to travel to the UK. I was there
to see at first hand the suffering your Government and successive Governments have done
in demonising migrants in a pathetic bid to pander to the base instincts of Reform and the
flawed strategy of Morgan McSweeney.
As you will know, if you even bothered to research my visit instead of taking Reform talking
points, I was there to witness the brutality of families living in tents in freezing temperatures. I
filled water tanks and picked up litter.
What that visit did do is confirm my belief that if we are to smash the boat gangs and stop
the boats, we need to offer safer and managed routes for migrants to come to this country.
Showing compassion as a politician is not a crime. In fact, we need to see much more of it.
It reminded me of a young MP who in October 2015 spent three days in Lesbos helping
migrants fleeing war-torn Syria. She posted videos on X, talked about handing out water and
croissants to refugees and food parcels.
When she returned to the UK, she wrote a very moving piece in the New Statesman. She
said “we have to work with our European partners and create new, safe, and legal routes for
refugees to get to Europe. We cannot abandon them to their fate, left as prey for smugglers
whilst risking death on the seas.”
She said “maybe we can make ourselves feel better by saying no-one is making them get on
the boats. And again, the Home Secretary is not entirely wrong when …

Dear Shabana, I notice today that you referred to me in your speech on immigration at the IPPR think tank. You said: “A party leader should not be on the beaches of France encouraging people to make a perilous crossing on small boats.” I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised especially after the hateful Labour campaign in Gorton and Denton, but this is just the latest in a string of lies peddled by a discredited Government who intentionally fan the flames of racism and division. When I went to Calais, I was not there to encourage people to travel to the UK. I was there to see at first hand the suffering your Government and successive Governments have done in demonising migrants in a pathetic bid to pander to the base instincts of Reform and the flawed strategy of Morgan McSweeney. As you will know, if you even bothered to research my visit instead of taking Reform talking points, I was there to witness the brutality of families living in tents in freezing temperatures. I filled water tanks and picked up litter. What that visit did do is confirm my belief that if we are to smash the boat gangs and stop the boats, we need to offer safer and managed routes for migrants to come to this country. Showing compassion as a politician is not a crime. In fact, we need to see much more of it. It reminded me of a young MP who in October 2015 spent three days in Lesbos helping migrants fleeing war-torn Syria. She posted videos on X, talked about handing out water and croissants to refugees and food parcels. When she returned to the UK, she wrote a very moving piece in the New Statesman. She said “we have to work with our European partners and create new, safe, and legal routes for refugees to get to Europe. We cannot abandon them to their fate, left as prey for smugglers whilst risking death on the seas.” She said “maybe we can make ourselves feel better by saying no-one is making them get on the boats. And again, the Home Secretary is not entirely wrong when …

Dear Shabana,

Let's clear some things up around migration and remember we're talking about people's lives.

05.03.2026 16:59 👍 4883 🔁 1785 💬 249 📌 340

Hi! Immigration lawyer here! Mahmood's view of the Refugee Convention as providing temporary protection just isn’t correct & AFAIK isn’t one anyone has ever adopted.

On the contrary, the Convention is clearly predicated on a long-term need for protection.
1/🧵

05.03.2026 13:28 👍 154 🔁 96 💬 3 📌 4
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📝📝📝
This is Labour's justification for ending the automatic legal duty to support asylum seekers.
Question for all organisations working with people seeking asylum. How many people have you encountered who deliberately made themselves destitute to access meagre asylum support?
👇👇

05.03.2026 19:09 👍 2 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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Latest statistics: overall decline in visa grants and concerns as Syrian asylum success rate plummets - Free Movement The quarterly immigration and asylum statistics covering the period to December 2025 have been published by the Home Office, giving us a full

In case you missed it: Latest statistics: overall decline in visa grants and concerns as Syrian asylum success rate plummets | Jasmine Quiller-Doust

05.03.2026 19:20 👍 1 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
Institute for Public Policy Research is live
Institute for Public Policy Research is live YouTube video by Institute for Public Policy Research

Shabana Mahmood speech here if you want to watch it. I am and my advice would be: don't. www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yFL...

05.03.2026 11:18 👍 43 🔁 10 💬 9 📌 2

Meanwhile, refugee family reunion continues to be paused, the Afghan schemes have been shut, and only 537 people came through the UK's flagship resettlement scheme last year.

05.03.2026 12:09 👍 21 🔁 13 💬 1 📌 1
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Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 1695, 5 March 2026 Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules published on 5 March 2026.

The statement of changes to the immigration rules www.gov.uk/government/p... and the written statement (which goes wider than the rules changes) are now out questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-stat...

05.03.2026 13:13 👍 10 🔁 12 💬 1 📌 1
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Thank you @stellacreasy.bsky.social for already tabling the motion opposing today’s immigration rules changes. The government should allow scrutiny of their plans and schedule a debate on this motion.

edm.parliament.uk/early-day-mo...

05.03.2026 20:42 👍 22 🔁 9 💬 1 📌 1

Senior Policy Officer, Dr Sophie Cartwright, has written for @bordercrim.bsky.social about access to legal advice in detention.

JRS UK's research last year highlighted how difficult it was for people in immigration detention to access any legal support.

📖Read more: www.jrsuk.net/accessing-le...

03.03.2026 10:41 👍 2 🔁 6 💬 0 📌 0
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UK puts emergency brake on study visas for four countries’ nationals Shabana Mahmood says UK’s generosity abused as study visas halted for nationals from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan

Just so we’re clear:
❌ Travelling clandestinely or in a small boat to seek asylum: wrong
❌ Travelling safely and regularly to seek asylum: also wrong

04.03.2026 08:15 👍 82 🔁 38 💬 4 📌 3
Post image Standing here today with my family and friends, backed by our community, has been a joy. I feel nothing but pride for the place I call home. While the journey hasn’t been easy and has tested us, I am delighted that this story ends not in frustration, but in belonging.              Nelson Shardey

Standing here today with my family and friends, backed by our community, has been a joy. I feel nothing but pride for the place I call home. While the journey hasn’t been easy and has tested us, I am delighted that this story ends not in frustration, but in belonging. Nelson Shardey

 Nelson’s lawyer Nicola said: 

I am thrilled that Nelson is finally a British Citizen. For someone who has lived in the UK for so long, and has been at the heart of his local community, the near 50-year journey to secure this legal recognition has been far too long.
 
If the Government’s earned settlement proposals become law, many more people could face journeys just as long or even longer to be legally settled in the country they call home. Some may never reach this milestone at all.
 
Nelson’s story tells the importance of achieving settlement and citizenship, and the precarious reality of living with limited leave to remain. Placing more people on extended routes to settlement would be entirely disproportionate and unfair."

Nelson’s lawyer Nicola said: I am thrilled that Nelson is finally a British Citizen. For someone who has lived in the UK for so long, and has been at the heart of his local community, the near 50-year journey to secure this legal recognition has been far too long. If the Government’s earned settlement proposals become law, many more people could face journeys just as long or even longer to be legally settled in the country they call home. Some may never reach this milestone at all. Nelson’s story tells the importance of achieving settlement and citizenship, and the precarious reality of living with limited leave to remain. Placing more people on extended routes to settlement would be entirely disproportionate and unfair."

NEWS: Yesterday, Nelson Shardey was granted British citizenship following a ceremony at Wallasey Town Hall. A local legend, Nelson has been in the UK for 49 years, since 1977. He hit headlines in 2024 when, represented by GMIAU, he legally challenged the Home Office.

27.02.2026 12:21 👍 11 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 2
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UK suspension of refugee family reunion scheme to be challenged in high court Judge allows Safe Passage International to launch judicial review of halting of right to bring in children and partners

⚖️⚖️
The govt's decision to suspend family reunion was shameful.
It's great @safepassageintl.bsky.social are challenging this in the courts, but the govt should not waste public money defending this policy. They should withdraw & let refugee families safely reunite.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

26.02.2026 09:26 👍 5 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 0
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New report calls for overhaul of flawed age assessment process for unaccompanied children - Free Movement A briefing on the National Age Assessment Board raises concerns about poor decision making in the age determination process, putting hundreds of children at

New from FM: New report calls for overhaul of flawed age assessment process for unaccompanied children | Jasmine Quiller-Doust

24.02.2026 12:33 👍 5 🔁 6 💬 0 📌 0
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Opinion | I’m the Prime Minister of Spain. This Is Why the West Needs Migrants.

"We, as Western nations, must choose between becoming closed and impoverished societies, or open and prosperous ones." Pedro Sánchez in der @nytimes.com
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/o...

05.02.2026 08:11 👍 65 🔁 28 💬 0 📌 1

There’s still time to register your own views on these daft and damaging proposals

11.02.2026 07:40 👍 6 🔁 6 💬 1 📌 0
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PM asks Sir Jim Ratcliffe to apologise for saying UK 'colonised by immigrants' Sir Keir Starmer says comments by the businessman and Manchester United co-owner are

So we have a billionaire, tax-avoiding owner of a football club literally *full* of migrants, wheeling out racist tropes straight out of the far-right playbook.

Jim & people like him are the problem, not the migrants working every day to keep our economy afloat.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

12.02.2026 08:40 👍 5 🔁 6 💬 3 📌 0
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Nurses’ families fear being torn apart in UK immigration crackdown, survey says Exclusive: Most people in charity’s study say they worry about being separated from relatives under Mahmood plans

This is a disgraceful way to treat anyone, let alone nurses who are the backbone of our NHS.

The government must rethink these vindictive and self-defeating proposals.

12.02.2026 08:57 👍 14 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0
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EU clears way for transfer of asylum seekers to unrelated countries A legislative change approved by the European Parliament will enable EU states to send asylum seekers to countries with which they have no existing link. #EuropeNews

"Offshoring" and "outsourcing" of asylum systems isn't new. We have plenty of data to show how incredibly harmful it is, including increasing human trafficking. Basically, it leaves be stranded in countries where they have no links, and often don't speak the language
www.euronews.com/my-europe/20...

10.02.2026 20:33 👍 38 🔁 20 💬 2 📌 0
Blue box containing the words "Submitting a response to the Government's earned settlement public consultation" with the logo "Praxis, for migrants and refugees"

Blue box containing the words "Submitting a response to the Government's earned settlement public consultation" with the logo "Praxis, for migrants and refugees"

🚨 Just THREE days left to tell the Government what you think of making refugees wait 20 years for safety 🚨

We cannot let these appalling plans go unchallenged.

Follow this guide from Praxis to make sure your voice is heard.
www.praxis.org.uk/consultation

09.02.2026 09:55 👍 10 🔁 19 💬 0 📌 5
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📣 The deadline for the Home Office’s public consultation on new immigration proposals is on the 12th of February. This ‘earned settlement’ model would have a huge impact on migrant communities such as the Latin American community (1/3)

09.02.2026 14:47 👍 2 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 0