Glasgow MP puts Bill before House of Commons to give asylum seekers right to work

Carol Monaghan, Glasgow North West SNP MP has presented her Asylum Seekers (Permission to Work) Bill to the House of Commons.

It would mean asylum seekers can earn income instead of the £5.39 allowance a day they are given.

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Just now they can only apply to work if they have been waiting more than a year for a decision on their case and even then what job they can take is restricted to the UK Government Shortage Occupation List.

Monaghan said: “It cannot be right that some of the most vulnerable people in our society are left languishing in poverty, while they wait many months or years for the Home Office to make an asylum decision.

“People who have risked everything to find safety in the UK should have the best chance of contributing to our society and integrating into our communities. They should be able to use their skills to live in dignity.”

She said that opinion polls and survey have found there is support for giving asylum seekers the right to work.

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A survey for Lift the Ban, a coalition of 240 charities, trade unions, businesses, and faith groups, f ound that 71% of people in the UK agree that people seeking asylum should be allowed to work and last year, a petition with 181,399 names was handed to the Home Office calling for an end to the ban on working.

Monaghan urged the UK government to support her Bill

She added: “Not only is it the right thing to do but it is also beneficial to the whole of society - contributing to taxes and supporting our economy.

“Many employers would be delighted to be able to employ asylum seekers.

“But sadly, due to the Tory government’s toxic hostile environment, we are left with the ludicrous situation where employers are left short of staff and asylum seekers are prevented from working.”