Team Blitz India
LONDON: The UK Government has announced a new taskforce to identify ‘unscrupulous’ lawyers after reports that false asylum claims were being submitted for a fee.
According to The Daily Mail, a number of solicitors had agreed to help an undercover journalist posing as a migrant submit a false application in exchange for thousands of pounds.
The Government said the Professional Enablers Taskforce will bring together regulatory bodies, law enforcement teams and government departments to increase enforcement action against lawyers who help migrants exploit the immigration laws.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said, “Crooked immigration lawyers must be rooted out and brought to justice. While the majority of lawyers act with integrity – we know that some are lying to help illegal migrants game the system. It is not right or fair on those who play by the rules.
“The British people want us to put an end to illegal migration – I am determined to crack down on these immoral lawyers and Stop the Boats,” she said.
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Alex Chalk KC said, “The accuracy and honesty of legal advice underpins the integrity of our world-leading legal system, so those who undermine it by encouraging deception must be held to account.
“This Government is committed to stopping the boats – that means breaking the business model of criminal gangs and holding to account unscrupulous lawyers who aid and abet them by abusing the legal system,” he added.
Only recently, the Solicitors Regulation Authority, which regulates solicitors in England and Wales, suspended three legal firms who were caught offering to submit fake asylum claims for migrants.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority prohibits lawyers from deceiving courts, and any act of dishonesty or lack of integrity may result in them losing their registration.
According to Ministry of Justice, a vast majority of lawyers act with professionalism and integrity but, as recent media reports have demonstrated, a small minority have been helping illegal migrants stay in the UK by encouraging them to make false claims.
Lawyers found to be coaching migrants on how to remain in the country by fraudulent means could be prosecuted under the Immigration Act 1971, Section 25, for ‘Assisting unlawful immigration to the UK’ and face a sentence of up to life imprisonment, it added.
BLURB: The British people want us to put an end to illegal migration – I am determined to crack down on these immoral lawyers and Stop the Boats.
