Law Centre (NI) Briefing
July 2007

Background

1. BIA has set up enforcement units across the UK.  The Northern Ireland unit was established within the last two years.
2. It is currently based in Templepatrick but will be permanently based in Belfast.
3. Removals are based on quotas (a feature that would seem to be in conflict with an approach based on the merits of individual cases).
4. Those detained are moved to Scotland/England, breaking the link with family, friends, community and legal advice.
5. The removals are carried out rapidly, denying individuals access to both justice and independent legal advice.
6. Since October 2006 Law Centre (NI) has been pressing PSNI (through the use of Freedom of Information requests) for information regarding statistics on the use of detention suites for immigration detainees. As of 25 June 2007, we have still not received any information.
7. The Home Office have stated that they are targeting vulnerable groups, specifically families, as seen by Law Centre (NI) in a number of cases where the High Court has intervened to order that families be returned.  We believe and are concerned that these families represent only a small number of the total removed as they had access to legal representation.

Issues

1. The enforcement unit is not openly regulated, therefore we are unaware of any codes of practice or any breaches of such a code.
2. The powers of enforcement unit officials are akin to police powers without oversight. In effect they can act as a second, internal, police force within the borders of Northern Ireland without the oversight that PSNI, through the body of the Ombudsman is subject to.
3. There are no official criteria for whom the officers can and cannot target, that we are aware of.
4. The powers in the proposed UK Borders Bill, along with existing anti-terror laws, will only extend both the powers and secrecy of the immigration officers.
5. The Scottish executive decided it did not want the detention power for immigration officers as it felt police in Scotland had sufficient powers.
6. The PSNI and Garda Síochána work very closely on cross-border immigration matters which can often lead to specific targeting of nationals of particular non-EEA states.
7. The presence of the enforcement unit and its actions could be responsible for aggravating racial tensions.

Goals

1. Right of access to legal advice and representation for those detained prior to removal out of Northern Ireland to determine any ECHR/EEA applications or any other relevant argument specific to Northern Ireland that could be made.
2. To gain more information both on the operation of the enforcement unit and the numbers detained in its work.
3. To follow the Scottish executive and argue that officials from the Border and Immigration Agency should not have powers of detention in Northern Ireland.

Questions / Statistics

1. How many have been removed out of Northern Ireland?
2. How many have been detained in Templepatrick and in PSNI custody suites?
3. Give undertaking that those detained will be given a right to legal representation/advice prior to removal out of Northern Ireland for obvious reasons and to avoid the EEA/ECHR rights (particularly again of an Irish born child) being denied.
4. Concerns about quick removals are compounded by the very limited number of legal practitioners operating 24/7 legal advice in this area.