Immigration minister apologises for 'inappropriate' Glasgow asylum letter

Published on Wednesday 19 January 2011 17:22

Immigration minister Damian Green has apologised for a letter which told asylum seekers that they faced being evicted from their homes with as little as three days notice.

The correspondence warned that they may be forced to move elsewhere in Scotland within three to five days, saying that they might only be able to take two pieces of luggage.

Over 600 families in Glasgow received the letters telling them they could soon be re-homed in November last year.

Mr Green today said the letter may have caused "distress" and was "inappropriate".

He said: "It was not a good letter to send out. It happened because someone used a standard template in a way that in the circumstances was inappropriate, it may well have caused some distress for which obviously the UKBA apologises and I`ve taken steps to ensure that letters like that won`t go out again."

He was speaking at the Scottish Affairs Committee's first evidence session in relation to its inquiry into UK Border Agency (UKBA) and Glasgow City Council, where the former body admitted that officials in the Glasgow region did not see the letter before it was sent out.

Phil Taylor, UKBA regional director for Scotland and Northern Ireland, told the committee: "We didn`t see the letter, it was sent out by our central contracts team who manage the contracts across the UK."

He said he did not believe that Glasgow City Council staff or the Scottish Refugee Council had seen the correspondence either.

The letter was sent after a contract between the agency and the council was cancelled when the two sides failed to agree on the costs of providing housing to the asylum seekers.

Mr Green said: "I`ve made clear to the Border Agency that people who send letters out to families or individuals who may be vulnerable should consider who they are sending it to and consider the repercussions it`s going to have."

In a statement issued later, after the meeting, Mr Taylor said: "Our priority remains ensuring a smooth transfer to the new accommodation contract, and minimal disruption for the affected asylum seekers.

"We are grateful for the work that Glasgow City Council and Y-People are doing to complete the transfer of the properties by April 3 with the aim of ensuring few, if any, asylum seekers will have to move.

"Once Glasgow City Council has formally agreed this contract extension, we will write to all affected tenants to confirm this."