(Lab): My Lords, I have four
grandchildren under the age of 10, and I cannot imagine being so
scared of what might happen to them on land that I put them in an
unsafe boat to cross the English Channel. Yet this week, Rasoul
Iran-Nejad and Shiva Mohammad Panahi put their three children,
Anita, aged nine, Armin, aged six, and 15 month-old Artin, in a
boat. Two of the children are dead, along with their parents, and
one is still missing. Surely in this day and age, France and the
UK, the fifth and seventh-largest economies in the world, with some
of the most professional armed forces and diplomatic services in
the world and a history of public service administration, can find
a way of coming together with the International Organization for
Migration and the UNHCR to find a safe route for families fleeing
persecution to come to France and this country, and to have their
applications determined in a safe and legal manner?
(Con): The noble Lord will appreciate that because there
is an ongoing investigation, I am unable to go into much detail
on the names, identities and ages of the people that he
mentioned, but I have seen the reports, as I am sure we all have,
and the details are heart-wrenching. This tragic case underlines
the importance of breaking the criminal business model, which is
exploiting the desperation of vulnerable people who, as he says,
are in fear. We are working very closely with the French. Our
National Crime Agency is assisting the French
authorities in their investigation. The Home Secretary has
appointed a former Royal Marine, Dan O’Mahoney, as the
clandestine channel threat commander, to tackle the problem
there. However, the noble Lord is also right that we must have
safe methods for people to claim asylum without making that
journey, which is why our vulnerable persons resettlement scheme
works with the organisations that he mentions, to ensure that
people do not undertake these perilous journeys.
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