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New Report from Lift the Ban

New Report from Lift the Ban

An updated Lift the Ban Lift-The-Ban-Common-Sense July 2020 has just been published.  The Lift the Ban coalition, made up of over 200 non-profit organisations, think tanks, businesses, trade unions and faith groups, is calling on the UK Government to give people seeking asylum and their adult dependants the right to work:

  • unconstrained by the Shortage Occupation List,
  • and after they have waited six months for a decision on their initial asylum claim or further submission.

It is informed by experts by experience and considerable research, well designed and accessible and a must read for all MPs.

What’s in the report?

New information in the report includes:

  1. Updated analysis of the potential benefit to the UK economy of enacting this policy, with our final estimate set at £97.8m per year (note this has increased since the first draft of this report that you received a few weeks ago);

  2. Results of the Skills Audit of people seeking asylum that you helped carry out in May of this year, showing that:

    o   45% would have been classed as a critical worker based on their previous work experience;

    o   1 in 7 had a health or social care background;

    o   77% had already or would like to volunteer for the NHS;

3.   New country comparisons showing how the UK’s policy leaves them as an outlier in the international community, including Australia, Sweden and Ireland.

Giving people seeking asylum the right to work is common sense. It would lift people out of poverty while saving the Government nearly £100m a year. You can take action to #LiftTheBan today by emailing your MP and demanding change.

There is already media coverage but we hope that the City of Sanctuary network will continue to draw their MPs’ attention to this vital report and  create a social media buzz promoting the report through their networks. In addition if you know someone seeking sanctuary who wants some local media coverage about what they could offer if allowed to work, please contact the Communications Manager  ([email protected]) for help with this. We would love to see more local news stories led by someone personally affected by the ban and which highlights the new report. Here is a Local Lift the Ban Press Release which you can adapt.

Below  are some social media ideas and downloadable graphics which you can use. Please post using the hashtag #LifttheBan. If more convenient, you could retweet the launch threads from the Asylum Matters and/or Refugee Action Twitter accounts that you can find here and here. Or share our City of Sanctuary UK Facebook post. 

  • Our new #LiftTheBan report shows that giving people seeking asylum the right to work is just common sense. It would help them integrate into their communities, live in dignity & use their skills to benefit the UK. All while saving the Gov £97.8m per year! https://lifttheban.co.uk/app/uploads/2020/07/Lift-The-Ban-Common-Sense.pdf
  • Stopping people seeking asylum from working has never made sense. But stopping them from helping during a global pandemic? That’s just foolish. #LiftTheBan https://lifttheban.co.uk/app/uploads/2020/07/Lift-The-Ban-Common-Sense.pdf [insert Twitter card with 45% stat and/or 1 in 7 health or social care workers stat]
  • Dear @PritiPatel, Are you worried about the financial outlook for the UK economy? Looking for policies that will help society at large AND save £££? Well, look no further! #LiftTheBan and let people seeking asylum work – it’s just common sense https://lifttheban.co.uk/app/uploads/2020/07/Lift-The-Ban-Common-Sense.pdf [insert Twitter card with £97.8m graphic]
  •  “I wish I had permission from the Gov to work, help in any way I could in these really hard moments because these people, the frontline people, are really amazing”. William, who is seeking asylum, is just one of many desperate to contribute. #LiftTheBan https://lifttheban.co.uk/app/uploads/2020/07/Lift-The-Ban-Common-Sense.pdf [insert 77% NHS volunteer graphic]
  • “It’s a time everyone wants to do something. Especially for me, I studied public health and it’s the time that I’m needed the most.” Watch Frogh explain why banning people seeking asylum from working during a global pandemic makes no sense #LiftTheBan [insert ITV video clip]

#LifttheBan will continue to work on the campaign over the coming weeks, including sharing new creative content (which CoS will share with the network on request)  and an updated Activism Pack.