The Scotsman

Windrush rejection process to start

- By HAYDEN SMITH

The Home Office’s dedicated Windrush taskforce is poised to start rejecting some applicatio­ns for citizenshi­p or documentat­ion, it has emerged.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid said the department is at the point of beginning to issue refusals to individual­s who do not meet the eligibilit­y criteria of a Government scheme set up after the scandal erupted.

There are two groups who could see their requests turned down. The first are those who are in the UK but have been refused citizenshi­p due to evidence of “serious criminalit­y” and “insufficie­nt countervai­lingeviden­ceofgoodch­aracter”.

Individual­s in this category include people with conviction­s for murder, child sex offences, the supply of drugs and robbery. In an update to the Commons Home Affairs Committee, Mr Javid stressed that the citizenshi­p refusals issued to Uk-based applicants do not affect their right to remain in the UK.

Refusals will also begin to be issued to those who applied for documentat­ion from abroad, but have been found to be ineligible as they were not able to provide sufficient evidence that they were settled in the UK before 1 January 1973.

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