Agenda item

In accordance with the Notice of Motion received under Section 4.20 of the Constitution, Councillor Elin Walker Jones will propose as follows:-

Wales has a laudable ambition of being the first Nation of Sanctuary in the World.  Gwynedd has acted in line with this ambition by offering sanctuary to refugees from across the world.  Despite the ambition of Wales, the Westminster Government is introducing an Illegal Migration Act which endangers the rights of refugees and asylum seekers and criminalises the act of reaching the British Isles in search of asylum.  This conflicts with the principles of the Refugees Convention 1951, and our ambition here in Wales.  In considering the fear that the UK Government’s unwelcoming messages may create, I call on this Council to confirm its ambition to assist refugees, in order to alleviate some of this fear.

Wales has a praiseworthy ambition of being the first Nation of Sanctuary in the World.   Gwynedd has acted in line with this ambition by offering sanctuary to refugees from across the world.  Despite the ambition of Wales, the Westminster Government are introducing an Illegal Migration Act which endangers the rights of refugees and asylum seekers and criminalises the act of reaching the British Isles in search of asylum.  This conflicts against the principles of the Refugees Convention 1951, and our ambition here in Wales.  Considering the fear that the unwelcome messages of the UK Government can trigger, this Council confirms its ambition of assisting refugees, in order to mitigate some of this fear.

(A)      The following notice of motion was submitted by Councillor Elin Walker Jones, in accordance with Section 4.20 of the Constitution and it was seconded.

Wales has a laudable ambition of being the first Nation of Sanctuary in the World.  Gwynedd has acted in line with this ambition by offering sanctuary to refugees from across the world.  Despite the ambition of Wales, the Westminster Government are introducing an Illegal Migration Act which endangers the rights of refugees and asylum seekers and criminalises the act of reaching the British Isles in search of asylum.  This conflicts with the principles of the Refugees Convention 1951, and our ambition here in Wales.  Considering the fear that the unwelcome messages of the UK Government may create, this Council confirms its ambition to assist refugees, in order to alleviate some of this fear.

The member set out the context to her motion, noting that:

·         That we, in 2023, are still living in a cruel world, that is full of injustice and violence, despite the United Nations Statement on Human Rights call for freedom, justice and world peace.

·         That Article 14 stated that everyone had the right to seek and to receive sanctuary from persecution in other countries.

·         Nevertheless, the United Kingdom had introduced policies over the years to make it less attractive for asylum seekers to come to Britain, including barriers on being able to work and apply for benefits, and holding asylum seekers in retention centres where they have no status or any idea when their application will be processed.

·         That the stories of individuals showed that this caused stress, depression and anxiety and even physical and mental health problems, bearing in mind that asylum seekers were already vulnerable.

·         The Illegal Migration Bill would make things worse for these vulnerable people, but the new legislation would not prevent refugees from fleeing, or seeking asylum, or coming to Britain, and the numbers would continue to increase.

·         That people seek asylum in the UK as people spoke English, or possibly they already had family or friends here.

·         That the new legislation referred to sending people back to their homeland, but even the Westminster Government acknowledged that asylum seekers could not often be sent back to their country, as it was not safe for them to return.

·         That the legislation referred to sending people who cannot return to their homeland to Rwanda, but the system had not yet commenced, and what about Rwanda's capacity to receive the asylum seekers?

·         If asylum seekers could not return home, or go to Rwanda, they would be kept in retention centres in the United Kingdom (which are already over-full), without status, without a hope of their asylum application being processed, without a safe place to call home, without an adequate place to live or sleep, without sufficient health care, and that for an unspecified period of time.

·         That we in Wales had an ambition of being a nation of sanctuary, and we in Gwynedd have a long tradition of extending a warm welcome to asylum seekers.

·         We know about people who have fled from violence, torture and indeed, fled death, and who have reached the shores of the British Isles in search of members of their families, for work, for accommodation and for a new life. We are proud in Gwynedd that we have, and continue, to support our fellow man from countries such as Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine, etc. and we have voluntary organisations in Gwynedd that support people, such as Croeso Menai, Pobl i Bobl, Cefn, etc.

·         Despite our praiseworthy ambition in Wales, which values the lives of all individuals, the Illegal Migration Act, which is currently being debated at Westminster, is inhumane, cruel and causes further trauma to people who have already experienced horrific trauma. This new legislation is contrary to our aspirations as the people of Gwynedd, and as the people of Wales.

·         That she called on her fellow councillors to support the motion and show their objection to this cruel and inhumane legislation.

Many other members expressed support to the notice.

A member noted that the subject highlighted the fact that it was perfectly acceptable to the UK Government and the media to tarnish migration by the most deprived, but people cannot dare condemn migration by the economically privileged, who affect areas such as Gwynedd.

RESOLVED to adopt the motion, namely:-

Wales has a laudable ambition of being the first Nation of Sanctuary in the World.   Gwynedd has acted in line with this ambition by offering sanctuary to refugees from across the world.  Despite the ambition of Wales, the Westminster Government is introducing an Illegal Migration Act which endangers the rights of refugees and asylum seekers and criminalises the act of reaching the British Isles in search of asylum.  This conflicts with the principles of the Refugees Convention 1951, and our ambition here in Wales. In considering the fear that the UK Government’s unwelcoming messages may create, this Council confirms its ambition to assist refugees, in order to alleviate some of this fear.