Hello,
I am looking for some advice, regarding a recent incident.
I believe the UK boarder agency/Heathrow immigration officers have breached my boyfriend’s human rights and discriminated against me as a disabled person, in their decision to refuse him entry into the UK.
My boyfriend and I had saved up for over a year to get him plane tickets and for us to have money to do things whilst he was over here.
We are both 29 years old. But I am disabled with degenerative neurological muscle disease, epilepsy and few other health issues; I am wheelchair bound and rely on 2 carers.
My boyfriend is quiet, withdrawn at times, he lacks in confidence and self esteem.
The plan for his visit was for him to boost his confidence and self esteem and for us both to meet.
We saved and planned this trip for a long time. It was cheaper for him to come to the UK than for us to pay for me and 2 carers to go to USA.
My BF has known about my health and disabilities from the day we meet, a year and a half ago, we meet on-line, and have communicated every day since via Skye Internet phone, we have never met in person, and this trip was to be the first and possibly the last we would meet in person, due to my health.
Due to the price of tickets, BF’s plane ticket was paid for, by our mutual friend who also lives in the USA. I and John have paid her for the tickets.
BF was to fly over to the UK, landing at Heathrow in London on Wednesday 3rd November 2010 at 7am approximate time. He was to return home, leaving Heathrow on the 7th December 2010 at 9am.
His plane journey was booked and paid for as a return ticket.
I had also purchased and sent via post to him, his train tickets from Heathrow airport to I live in the UK.
He had a return plane ticket, but he did not have a return train ticket, as we had hoped if my health was good, that we would travel to London a few days before he flew home, so he could sight see London, due to my health, we are unable to make such plans till nearer the time. The plan if I was not well enough was he would get the train to Heathrow the day before his flight home and stay in the heat row hotel.
When BF landed at Heathrow on Wednesday 3rd November at approximate 7am, BF was detained by immigration at customs on terminal 4 of Heathrow airport.
BF was told, that due to the fact he was staying more than a month, as he was planning to stay 5 weeks, that they needed to check something for him. At this point john didnt realise he was in any trouble, he just thought they where checking something for him, as they had stated.
He was handed a piece of paper, that stated they had his passport etc for safe keeping, he still didnt think or belive he was in any trouble. The imigration officer did not get to BF to interview him, untill aprox 12pm, they interviewed him and made there diesion with out investigating all with in an hour. Yet they left him 5 hours under the belief they where 'checking something for him' before interviewing him.
BF was unable to make a call to me until 1:30pm. This was the only call he was able to make untill he was sent o the detention center, or at least the only call he was lead to believe he was able to make.
An immigration officer had refused him access to the UK on the grounds that:
1) They did not believe he would return as planned on the 7th December, they believed this, as he has no siblings in the USA, he lived at home with his parents and has no job at the current moment. They believed he had more reason to stay in the UK because of me.
BF had to give up work 2 years ago due to depression and moved back home with his parents, where he lives with his mum and disabled dad. For the last 6 months BF has been trying to get a job, he even recently, in the last 4 weeks purchased a new car to make it easier to get and find a job. He also renewed his driving licence in the last week. He had his driving licence on him, but this seemed to not be proof enough of his wish to return home as planned on the 7th December. As to regards to him staying because of me, both me and BF are fully aware of my health and where it is going, and yes we have talked about living together and our options, but we both know this is not possible, and would not be fair on BF given my health. We where both aware of this and as much as it upset us, we knew it was what was best for us both.
2) BF did not have enough money on him to support his stay in the UK
BF had $500 of traveller's cheques. In UK pounds that £307.20p
According to the UK government, a person can live on
Single 25 and over -£59:15 per week
That is what is given to those on job seekers allowance,
BF had enough for £61.44p a week with his own traveller's cheques, more than our government states a person needs to live on in the UK for a week.
BF was going to be staying with me; he did not need to pay for a hotel.
3) That I could not financially support his visit due to the fact I am disabled and on disabled benefits.
This particular one, I believe they discriminated against a disabled person.
I had £600 in savings that I had saved for BF'S visit, as week as I had paid out approximate £550 for a activity holiday for the disabled for myself and BF to go on whilst he was here. To state that I could not financially support a friend staying with me because I am disabled is discrimination I believe. They did not contact me to even find out if I had any savings to support BF'S stay. They just assumed because I was disabled, that I didn't.
There is also the fact, that you can claim for DLA even if you are a millionaire, there for there claim was unfair with out being investigated.
It is also well known and common sense, that it is cheaper to feed 2 people than it is to feed one, this is why the government give couples on job-seekers only £92.80 per week.
With my savings and johns traveller's cheques we had enough to have £181.44p a week to live on and do things with, for the 5 weeks of his stay in the UK, that is not counting the extra money I would have received via benefits during his stay. That is based solely on our savings we saved for his trip.
4) BF was unable to say what he had planned to do or see whilst visiting the UK.
BF withdrew when he felt pressured, that's the way BF is. Me and BF had talked of doing many things from sightseeing in London, Paignton, Torquay, we also had our booked holiday at the Calvert trust Exmoor, alongside we had wished to go to places like the zoo and aquarium... we had no set dates for anything other than Calvert trust as my health changes day to day, and that's how we would decided what to do, day to day we decided to go out and where or to stay at mine and relax. You can’t plan too much ahead when you have disabilities to the extent of mine.
This was all explained to the immigration officer, yet made no difference; again I believe that they discriminated against a disabled person.
I believe BF's Human rights were not met by the immigration officers. He was not able to call anyone to inform them of his situation from 7am when detained till 1:30pm when he called me in tears. I then talked to an officer I explained how important this trip was, about my health and that this maybe the only chance we get to meet. The officer said BF had already explained all of this, and that the decision had been made and nothing I say could change that. BF was kept at Heathrow airport until he was taken to Colnbrook detention and holding centre near Heathrow, he did not arrive there till 7:30pm
I spent from the moment I heard from him seeking help, calling solicitors and trying to get him legal help. They had told me on the phone at 1:30pm that they would be sending him home the following day at 9am, they hardly left anytime for him to legally fight, they took his rights away to get legal help, in the fact he 1) did not get to make a call till 1:30pm, and planned to fly him out at 9am the following morning, 2They did not give him any numbers to call for legal help, and the letter exsplaining why he was not aloud into the UK was given to him around 1pm he was not aware what the letter ment, the very letter all I had spoken to had said they needed to know what was on it to know how to fight it for him, I couldnt get back through to BF to see if he had this letter till he arrived at the dentention center at 7:30pm. At which point he to was given a list of numbers to call for legal help. this then left us 7:30pm to 9am to get him legal help..... All out of hours, we had no chance that I believe was against his human rights.
BF was unable to make any calls to gain legal help whilst at heathrow as he had no british coins on him, and no clue who to call, he was not given the chance to call me till 1:30pm, that was the first time he was able to make a call.
They deported him and sent him home on the 9am flight from Heathrow today, 4th November 2010
This was the first time BF had flown, the first time he had left the country and the first time he been too far away from home, he was scared with all he was put through.
I also believe he did not have a fair investigation, as at no point did anyone call me or his family to investigate what he had told them. There decision was based purely on assumptions. I believe it was his human right to have had a fair and full investigation, and I and his family should have been called to make the investigation.
The only time i talked to a Officer regarding my finacial situation and if i could support BF's visit was after i requested to talk to a superviser, by this point it was an hour before they where due to put John on the plane and the decion was final and no matter what i said nothing was going to stop them flying him home.
I believe that there was denial of human rights and disabled discrimination with in this decision.
I and BF would like to know if that is right. Did they breach his human rights and discriminate against me and unfairly refused him access to the UK for those reasons?
Not only have the border control stopped us from meeting, with this, as we believe unfair decision, but they have also stopped us going on our pre paid holiday we missed that opportunity due to border control decisions. A holiday that is well known for helping people achieve and see there potential, something I believed would benefit BF and me.
I also believe BF should have been given the option to have had support or legal help from the start, it is very clear when you talk to BF that he can be withdrawn and depressed, maybe if he had been given the opportunity of support, he would have been able to given the information require in a way the immigration officer could understand.
Before we booked BF's flights we had checked to make sure he did not need a visa, according to the UK boarder control, as he was only visiting for 5 weeks, on holiday, he did not need a visa, so he did not have one.
I would be grateful of all and any help and advice that I and BF can do from here to fight this.
Our wish is only to be able to meet, before my disabilities become too much for that to happen, or worse, I won’t be here to meet him.
We also wish to make sure this does not happen to anyone else again
Thank you for your time
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