The Home Office Border Security Command has refused to reveal the forecast cost of Labour’s vaunted one in, one out migrant deal. You can guess why…
Guido’s FOI Unit asked the BSD what the total forecast cost range for the operation of the pilot deal, which is running until June next year, and the cost of transportation of asylum seekers to and from France. It said release of the costs would “prejudice” the UK’s relationship with other state. A classic caper…
“We continue to explore measures aimed at dismantling the business models of the criminal smuggling gangs. It is imperative that confidential information is not released to the public which would prejudice relations between the UK and other States. Organised Immigration Crime is a global threat, with no respect for national boundaries. Tackling it requires an international response, with governments and international organisations working together to develop strategic solutions and collaborative operations, across the whole irregular migration route, from source to destination countries. Given that the policy has recently launched and remains at an early stage, to release the information at this point would undermine the ongoing and sensitive negotiations with any partner state and would negatively impact crucial relationships with any other state involved in the collaborative efforts to address the issue of irregular migration.”
The fact that the policy is new has no bearing on whether the public should know its cost. Considering the pitifully low numbers swapped so far you can surmise the cost per return would be quite high. The French have always asked an eye-watering price for their co-operation on border matters…
Speaking on Times Radio, former Home Secretary David Blunkett spoke about overdiagnosis of mental problems:
“Let’s distinguish those who are really severely mentally ill, diagnosed with things that require prolonged medical and diagnostic treatment. My wife and I talk about this a lot, because she’s a retired GP, about the fact that you can be sad without being ill. You can be momentarily depressed because your boyfriend or girlfriend’s just thrown you and you’re not mentally ill. You can even have mild issues, which can be dealt with with the right kind of support, but it doesn’t make you mentally ill. So we’ve got a real task, I think, to get the psychology, if you like, of this over. But there are things where you definitely need medical intervention, and there are other things where you need good friends, you need good connectivity, and you need a job.”