4,000 foreign criminals the Government wants to deport are at large in Britain

4,000 foreign criminals the Government wants to deport are at large in Britain...and 800 have been here more than five years

By Daily Mail Reporter
PUBLISHED: 10:51 EST, 15 May 2012 | UPDATED: 11:15 EST, 15 May 2012
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'Taking too long': UK Border Agency chief executive Rob Whiteman admitted to MPs today that foreign criminals were not being deported quickly enough as it emerged nearly 4,000 are still at large in the community.

Nearly 4,000 foreign criminals whom the Government wants to deport are at large in the community, figures showed today.

Some 2,500 were released from jail more than two years ago and more than 800 have been out for more than five years, UK Border Agency (UKBA) statistics showed.

Rob Whiteman, the agency’s chief executive, admitted foreign criminals were not being deported quickly enough as he blamed the delays on the lengthy judicial processes, difficulties obtaining documents from other countries and deliberate attempts to frustrate the system.

The revelation is further embarrassment for UKBA, which was heavily criticised by MPs last month after it emerged fewer than 40 per cent of 1,000 foreign criminals released from prison in a border scandal six years ago had been deported.

One foreign criminal hampered attempts to deport him nine times before he was sent back earlier this year, Mr Whiteman told MPs on the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee.

One trick used by offenders is to tell officials on arriving home that they are not from that country, he added.

'I agree with you that it’s taking too long,' Mr Whiteman said.
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'We do not want foreign national offenders to be in the community for several years before they are deported.'

But he said that in 90 per cent of cases, courts rather than the UKBA had ruled that the criminals should be released because there was no realistic prospect of a quick removal.

'Our view is that they should be held in detention,' he said.
Backs against the wall: The admission is further embarrassment for the UKBA after it was heavily criticised by MPs last month for failing in its basic functions over an ongoing border scandal from 2006
Mr Whiteman blamed several factors for the delays, including the length of time it can take for cases to go through the system, the multiple rights of appeal on different points of law, difficulties obtaining documents from foreign countries and problems with people trying to obstruct the system.

Some case law which puts the interests of children above the interests of deportation can also cause difficulties, he said.

Asked about the numbers, he added: 'I don’t think I can guarantee that it will come down rapidly.'

Some 3,900 foreign national offenders who are subject to deportation action were living in the community as of April 4, the UKBA figures showed.

The 3,900 foreign offenders living in the community are all on bail, the Home Office said.

Pledge: Immigration Minister Damian Green (pictured) has said the Government needs to 'clean up' a legacy of mistakes on dealing with foreign criminals and ensure the errors were not repeated

These include 817 offenders who were released more than five years ago, 1,650 who were released more than two years ago, and 664 who were released between one and two years ago, a breakdown given in a letter from Mr Whiteman to MPs on the committee said.

A further 31 were released between six months and a year ago and 327 were released within the previous six months.

There were 'data quality issues' with another 166 cases.
Earlier, Michael Ellis, the Tory MP for Northampton North, told Mr Whiteman: 'Your own figures show there were 3,900 foreign national offenders subject to deportation action who are living in communities as of six weeks ago.

'Now I accept that 2,467 were released over two years ago and 817 were released over five years ago, but people are getting fed up with this.

'The fact of the matter is that despite the previous incompetences you've inherited as far as the legacy, which I appreciate is the case, there's too many people who are foreign nationals committing criminal offences who surely should have been deported and it's taking too long.'

Last month, the Home Affairs Select Committee published a report slamming UKBA for failing to fulfill its basic functions over a border scandal that surfaced six years ago.

In 2006, the Labour government was rocked by revelations that more than 1,000 foreign nationals had been let out without being considered for deportation.

By November last year, fewer than 400 had been removed from the country or deported, and more than 50 have still not been found.

Hundreds more remain here despite their cases having been concluded.
In turmoil: The UKBA was embroiled in another scandal earlier this year when Home Secretary Theresa May (pictured) split the agency following revelations that border controls were relaxed repeatedly without ministerial approval

At the time, immigration Minister Damian Green said the UKBA had improved from a state of 'complete chaos' when the Government took office two years ago.

He said: 'It is getting better slowly, probably too slowly than most people would want - some areas are getting better faster than other areas.

'The asylum service is immeasurably much better than it was three or four years ago.

'We start deportation action on foreign national prisoners now 18 months before the end of their sentence. As a result of that, last year we removed over 4,500 foreign criminals, and 45% of those were by the end of their sentence.'

Mr Green said the Government had to 'clean up' a legacy of mistakes on dealing with foreign criminals and ensure the errors were not repeated.

'In the coming months, we will be changing immigration laws to cut the abuse of the Human Rights Act, which has been used by far too many people to delay the process of removal'
Immigration Minister Damian Green (last month)
He added: 'We're not stopping here and I'm not saying the system is perfect yet.

'In the coming months, we will be changing immigration laws to cut the abuse of the Human Rights Act, which has been used by far too many people to delay the process of removal.'

The foreign prisoners scandal saw 1,013 offenders released without officials even considering whether they should be deported. Of the total, 433 have had their cases concluded but have still not been kicked out of the country.

In many cases, criminals use human rights laws to challenge their removal, or officials struggle to secure passports from their home countries, which do not want to take them back.

The reputation of UKBA was also severely damaged earlier this year in a highly critical report and Home Secretary Theresa May split the agency in two after it emerged border controls were relaxed repeatedly without ministerial approval.

A report by John Vine, the chief inspector of UKBA, found 500,000 passengers had passed into the UK on Eurostar trains without proper passport checks against a terror and crime watchlist.

The reputation of UKBA was severely damaged earlier this year in a highly critical report and Home Secretary Theresa May split the agency in two after it emerged border controls were relaxed repeatedly without ministerial approval.

A report by John Vine, the chief inspector of UKBA, found 500,000 passengers had passed into the UK on Eurostar trains without proper passport checks against a terror and crime watchlist.

4,000 foreign criminals the Government wants to deport are at large in Britain...and 800 have been here more than five years | Mail Online