Making a statement in the States on Tuesday, Senator Ian Gorst said that it would pose too great a risk to Jersey to house Syrian refugees through a UK relocation scheme.
The Island does not have its own procedures for asylum so is reliant on UK protocol, he told the Assembly. By signing up to the UK scheme Jersey would be obliged to find immediate work, housing and health care for any refugees – not just Syrians.
The Chief Minister, who earlier this year outlined the possibility that Jersey could accommodate five or six Syrian families, said: ‘We cannot expose Jersey to that risk. Our Island simply would not have the capacity to manage the impact on housing stock, on public services, or on the work market.’
Jersey has already donated around £1 million in aid to refugees in Syrian camps through the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission but Senator Gorst said a further ‘considerable’ sum will be ring-fenced next year.
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As Members are aware, Jersey does not have its own procedures for asylum. We are reliant on UK processes and, if we were to resettle refugees via the UK relocation scheme, we would be obliged to ensure parity with the provisions made under that scheme. This would include immediate access to work, education and health services, plus the provision of housing and the provision of benefits, or an equivalent income.
We could find ways to make appropriate provision, either by using powers that exist in law, or by bringing forward new statutory provisions. But doing so would present a significant risk because, under the European Convention on Human Rights, as enacted by the Human Rights (Jersey) Law 2000, we cannot treat one group of refugees differently from another.
If we were to make special provision for Syrian refugees, we would leave ourselves vulnerable to a legal challenge on the grounds of discrimination. And this would mean that any refugee – whether or not they were Syrian – who was living legally in the UK and who entered Jersey could potentially, from their point of arrival, be entitled to the same special provisions.
