Windrush: Home Office to 'learn lessons' through internal review
The Home Office is to hold an internal review of its handling of the Windrush scandal, Theresa May has said.
She told MPs it would have "full access" to all relevant documents, including policy papers and case files. Prime Minister Theresa May has given the go-ahead for the Home Office to investigate its own handling of the Windrush scandal. Thousands of people from the Caribbean who arrived in the UK as children are being threatened with deportation, despite having lived and worked in the UK for decades.
Her announcement came as Labour prepares to try and force ministers to release all government papers relating to Windrush cases since 2010.
Jeremy Corbyn said the crisis had been "made in the Home Office" under Theresa May's leadership The main opposition party wants all the evidence to be shared. Many of the Windrush generation arrived in the UK on their parents’ passports and never applied for travel documents. Their landing cards were destroyed by the Home Office in 2010 while Theresa May was in charge.
At Prime Minister's Questions, he asked Mrs May whether she "felt a pang of guilt" about the resignation of Amber Rudd over the issue earlier this week At Prime Minister’s Questions - the weekly 30-minute session in the House of Commons when Mrs May answers MPs’ questions - the Labour leader brought up the recent resignation of Home Secretary Amber Rudd. Ms Rudd quit saying she misled MPs ‘by mistake’ over government targets for removing illegal migrants. It was revealed that targets do exist - despite her telling a Commons committee they didn't.
The prime minister said the inquiry would seek to "learn lessons" from the treatment of Windrush families, some of whom have been detained and threatened with deportation after their right to remain in the UK was questioned Mrs May has apologised to all those affected and said the inquiry will look into - and learn from - all the mistakes that were made. Changes to immigration law in 2012 required people to have documentation to work, rent a property or access benefits. Some Windrush families, whose documents were destroyed by the Home Office, have lost their jobs, been denied medical treatment - or threatened with deportation.
It will aim to complete its work before the summer recess in July.
She said "speed is of the essence" and new home secretary Sajid Javid "will be commissioning a full review of lessons learned, independent oversight and external challenge”.
The review, she said, will have "full access to all relevant information in the Home Office, including policy papers and casework decisions”.
The Conservatives are expected to oppose a Labour motion which would see all relevant internal documents handed to the Commons Home Affairs Committee Labour has called a vote in the Commons to try to force the government to share all the ‘secret’ Windrush documents with the Commons Home Affairs Committee - a cross-party group of MPs in the House of Commons that scrutinises the work of Home Office