Who Gets to Stay in the UK?
BBC TWO, 9.00PM
Immigration is one of the most contentious topics in global politics, not least here in Britain. This new series will stoke the debate, as it examines who among the 700,000 non-eu citizens that applied to stay in the UK last year were granted the privilege. The first of three episodes follows a trio of foreigners applying on various grounds. Rashed overstayed his student visa after developing an aggressive case of Crohn’s disease; his NHS doctor and immigration lawyer argue that he will die if he is sent home to Bangladesh. Asylum seeker Dillian says that, as a gay man, his life is in danger in Trinidad and Tobago. Finally, Valeriya, a 27-year-old Russian, hopes that family money will help her to secure an entrepreneur’s visa now that her fifth student visa has expired.
Statistics detail the high costs of processing applications and housing asylum seekers, but also the income generated by top-tier visa applications. Immigration lawyers, ex-home Office officials and campaigners lend weight to both sides of a balanced debate – although, by introducing us to the individuals involved, the film does put a human face on the issue, and attempts to tug at the heartstrings. Vicki Power