3 September 2010

Improving Dementia Services in Northern Ireland- A Regional Strategy

The Bamford Action Plan 2009-2011 announced in October 2009, included a commitment to develop a dementia services strategy. This consultation outlines DHSSPS proposals for the establishment of a Northern Irish Dementia Strategy. Law Centre NI welcomes this development as a positive step in recognising the individual needs of people with dementia and their carers, however, our response highlights the importance of maintaining consistency with the new mental capacity legislation.

ESOL for Asylum Seekers

Northern Ireland is the only place in the UK where asylum seekers cannot obtain free publicly provided English classes. The Law Centre has joined forces with NICRAS and Bryson One Stop Asylum Service to argue that free classes should be available for asylum seekers and refugees. We identify a range of benefits for the individuals and for the wider community. We look forward to receiving the Department of Education and Learning’s response to the briefing. Please click here to read our briefing.

12 August 2010

A supreme victory for ‘fresh claim’ asylum seekers!

The Supreme Court has recently ruled that some ‘fresh claim’ asylum seekers are eligible to apply for work permission. Under the EU Reception Directive, asylum seekers are entitled to apply for work permission if the UKBA does not issue an initial decision within 12 months. The UK has always argued that this Directive only applies to first-time asylum applications, however, the Supreme Court was unanimous in its decision that the Directive can extend to subsequent applications. This means that fresh claim applicants who have been waiting for 12 months for a decision will be able to apply for work permission. The Law Centre believes that asylum seekers should not be denied the right to work and we are delighted by this result. We anticipate that the UKBA will change its policy without delay. Read the judgement here.

Acquired Brain Injury Action Plan is published

On 5 July 2010 Health Minister Michael McGimpsey published the Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) Action Plan. The Action Plan sets out how services to treat people affected by acquired brain injury should be developed, and aims to promote a person-centred approach in the provision of care. LCNI responded to the consultation on the development of the Action Plan in June 2009 highlighting its concerns regarding the lack of available and appropriate respite care facilities for those with ABI.

UKBA to end the detention of children

The UK Government has given a commitment to end the detention of children for immigration purposes. We argue that in response to the UKBA review, the new policy should be applied immediately and needs to be absolute: it is not acceptable to start separating children from their parents.

Welfare Reform Bill update

The Welfare Reform Bill (NI) passed its Final Stage of consideration by the NI Assembly on 30 June 2010. LCNI has been monitoring the progress of the Bill and provided evidence to the DSD Committee as well as tabling a number of amendments to the Bill. Read the Hansard final stage here.

3 June 2010

Child Poverty Strategy

The Child Poverty Alliance (of which the Law Centre is a member) will be working with OFMDFM to inform the development of a new Child Poverty Strategy for NI.  The new Child Poverty Act 2010 requires all the devolved administrations and the Westminster Government to put in place strategies to tackle child poverty.  OFMDFM is required to publish its own strategy within twelve months of the Act being passed (i.e. by March 2011).  The strategy must set out the measures that Northern Ireland government departments will take to meet the child poverty targets to ensure that, as far as possible, children in Northern Ireland do not experience socio-economic disadvantage.  Read our recent paper on the Act.

The Beginning of the End of Child Detention?

Following the promise in the Conservative/Lib Dem Coalition’s Programme for Government to ‘end the detention of children for immigration purposes’ the Home Office has announced that it will no longer detain children in Dungavel Detention Centre in Scotland (view Home Office press release in full).  The Law Centre welcomes moves to stop detaining children. We are concerned that children will now be transported to other detention centres which have been subject to significant criticism by the Chief Inspector of Prisons.