Everyone should be able to speak with a doctor in confidence. A parent should know that their children can attend school without sparking a visit from immigration enforcement. And somebody escaping trafficking or domestic violence should be able to trust a police officer or social worker.
Unfortunately, much of migrants’ personal data is exempted from the protections the rest of us enjoy. Data-sharing agreements between the Home Office and other government departments, and agencies, mean that people with concerns about their status are often afraid to seek medical treatment, send their children to school or even report crime to the police. More than half of all UK police forces have handed over victims of crime to immigration enforcement.
We all lose out when doctors, nurses, teachers and police officers can’t build the trust they need to do their jobs.
If we’re committed to ensuring that everybody feels safe reporting a crime, that all children go to school and th…