Talk - Independent Asylum Commission

“The subject of asylum is one of the most contentious issues of today,” says Jonathan Cox, of the Independent Asylum Commission. “Some people believe that asylum seekers are met with inhumane treatment and don’t get the support they need. Others think that there are too many loopholes to let refugees into the country in the first place. But everybody is agreed on one thing. The present system doesn’t work.” Cox is speaking in the Westgate Centre tonight about the body he works for, which has been formed in order to hear evidence from all quarters over the next 18 months in order to produce a report on the issue. “It will be a good time for such information to be released,” he says, “because we will then be under a Brown regime, or perhaps a Cameron regime, and there will be a bit of space created to act on our recommendations.”

“The Commission is funded entirely by charitable organisations,” he continues, “which means no money from the government or from any NGO’s, which safeguards our impartiality. There are a variety of commissioners who will be hearing evidence, from all walks of life, including Sir John Waite and a number of peers, academics, theologians and human rights experts.” Cox will be talking about what sort of issues the Commission will be looking into, and how the public can get involved. AG