Women’s equality in the UK – A health check

16.16
16.17
16.18
16.19
16.20
Recommendation:
Funding for Supporting People must be ring-fenced
Family immigration law issues
For migrant, refugee and asylum seeking women the principle of family unity must be respected
by the UK authorities as a matter of paramount importance. The cases of individuals who wish
to be reunited with relatives in the UK should be examined in the light of international, regional
and domestic law and best practice. Family reunion should be approached by the UK in a
generous spirit and the definition of ‘family member’ should pay due regard to the reality and
importance of non-nuclear family relationships.
However, new rules 27 set out in June 2012 on family migration may not meet these requirements.
The rules acknowledge that people have a right to respect for private and family life under
ECHR Article 8, but state this is not an absolute right, and it is legitimate for the Government to
interfere with the exercise of that right where it is in the public interest to do so. This includes
only allowing migrants to come or remain in the UK if they can support themselves financially,
and their partner is able to ‘integrate into British society’. This includes from October 2013
applicants for settlement being required to pass the ‘Life in the UK’ test and present an English
language speaking and listening qualification, which will discriminate against the poorest and
most vulnerable, 28 especially migrant women. (See Appendix: 12)
Key changes also include a minimum income threshold of £18,600 for those who wish to
sponsor the settlement of a spouse or partner in the UK. A higher threshold will be required
for the additional sponsorship of migrant children under the age of 18: £22,400 for one child
and an additional £2,400 for each further child sponsored before the migrant parent reaches
settlement. This will obviously impact on women with children. Increasing the minimum
probationary period from two years to five years before non-EEA spouses and partners can
apply for settlement will also affect women disproportionately. (See Article 9 and Appendix: 8)
There is also a new measure that adult dependent relatives will be required to demonstrate that,
as a result of age, illness or disability, they require a level of long-term personal care that can only
be provided in the UK by their relative here and without ‘recourse to public funds’. This will force
many women to take on caring responsibilities. (See Article 15 for more information)
Family justice system response to domestic violence
Despite significant developments in the law and policy on domestic violence and child contact,
new research supports many studies which indicate ongoing failures and missed opportunities
in the family justice system to protect women and children from violent ex-partners and a
tendency of judges and other statutory professionals to minimise domestic violence in the
context of child contact applications. 29 The research showed that despite histories of violence,
children refusing contact or expressing terror or distress, injunctions and criminal convictions
and women’s fears for children’s emotional safety, that unsupervised contact was routinely
ordered to abusive fathers. Moreover the system failed to protect women at court; all too
27. UK Border Agency, Family migration changes announced – updated http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/newsarticles/2012/
june/13-family-migration Accessed: 26/03/13
28. Cooke, M. and Simpson, J. (2012) ‘A test too far: New language tests for Migrants’, Migrant Rights Network, Migration Pulse blog, 6th July 2012
http://www.migrantsrights.org.uk/migration-pulse/2012/test-too-far-new-language-tests-migrants
29. Coy, M., Perks, K., Scott, E. and Tweedale, R. (2012) Picking up the Pieces: domestic violence and child contact. Rights of Women and
CWASU: London http://www.rightsofwomen.org.uk/pdfs/Policy/Picking_Up_the_Pieces_Report_final.pdf
166 Women’s equality in the UK: CEDAW shadow report 2013