News Release

29th January 2003

ASYLUM SEEKERS AND WHITTINGTON

Following concerns expressed last year, since denied by the Government after being contacted by Michael Fabricant, that Whittington Barracks may be used for asylum seekers, Michael Fabricant is now calling for radical changes to the asylum system to deliver a safer and fairer system in the interests of the genuine refugee and of the British public.

As a former member of the Home Office Committee which investigated the integrity of Britain's ports of entry, Michael says "The Government must take action to secure the country's borders at this time of heightened tension and set out a series of proposals to improve the asylum system over the long term. Too many people are still getting through.

"It must be the first duty of any Government to protect the public. Some estimates suggest that over 1 million illegal immigrants are now walking Britain's streets. While I have no wish to be alarmist, there is growing evidence that a few may pose a risk to the safety of the public. I believe that the Government must finally take action - and take it immediately - to introduce 24 hour a day monitoring of all ports of entry. The Government must ensure that no more asylum seekers are allowed to walk the streets of Birmingham and elsewhere until they have been properly vetted by the security services.

"But we also need a safer and fairer asylum system in the long term, where the genuine refugee is helped and the impostor is not. We should introduce small 'one-stop' accommodation centres for all new arrivals so that their applications can be processed quickly and efficiently. I believe in the principle that Britain should always be 'a safe haven, but not a soft touch'. It is the large number of impostors who delay our accepting genuine asylum seekers into our society.