An asylum seeker sent from the UK back to France under the 'one in, one out' scheme has covertly returned to Britain and is now in hiding, the Guardian has learned. In the first interview with a returnee living under the radar, the man described his situation as 'desperate' and said he knew of at least 18 others who had done the same.
The man, who returned to the UK in a lorry, said: 'After I was sent back to France by the Home Office, the smugglers caught me and wanted to force me to work with them. I refused and they beat me badly. I escaped and felt my only option was to come back to the UK, which is safer for me.' He added that smugglers now offer lorry journeys to the UK for €4,000-5,000, compared to €1,000-2,000 for a small boat crossing.
The one in, one out scheme, agreed between the UK and France, aims to deter small boat crossings. However, thousands have continued to cross the Channel, and smugglers have adapted by launching more vessels from Belgium and offering lorry routes. As of 28 April, 605 people had been returned to France and 581 had come to the UK under the scheme.
The returnee said he rarely leaves his room in a city outside London, fearing smugglers, police and the Home Office. 'I don't have a life any more,' he said. 'I keep thinking about handing myself in, but if I do, the Home Office may send me back to France, and the smugglers will kill me.' He stressed he wants to live peacefully and work legally, but fears the immigration rules may force people like him into crime.
In a separate case, an asylum seeker who smuggled himself out of the UK in January after living here for over a decade, fearing detention, received an email from the Home Office unaware he had left. The man, now in Italy, said: 'It is crazy. They do not realise I am no longer in the UK. I would love to return legally, but there is no way.'
Seema Syeda from the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants said: 'The government's border regime is pushing people into unsafe routes and criminalising people. The simple, moral answer is to allow people seeking safety to use the same routes as everyone else: train, ferry, plane. Public money would be better spent improving public services.'
