However, the reason for the lack of consultation is administratively poor and its impact is cruel: ‘to protect the integrity of the schemes and prevent a rush of applications to preempt the changes to the rules which have, in part, been made to mitigate risks of misuse of the generosity of the schemes’. [...] The Explanatory Memorandum states: ‘11.1 The changes to the Ukraine Family Scheme (the closure of the UFS scheme to new applications) and to the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (changes to the sponsor eligibility through HMG guidance and period of permission granted to HFU applicants) will come into effect at 1500GMT on 19 February 2024, and therefore depart from the usual convention that cha. [...] As confirmed by the Supreme Court in the case of Hesham Ali, the point of the Immigration Rules ‘is to give Parliament a degree of control over the practice to be followed by the Secretary of State in the administration of the 1971 Act for regulating immigration control’.35 They are ‘laid before Parliament, may be the subject of debate, and can be disapproved under the negative resolution procedur. [...] The Explanatory Memorandum fails to explain that the Home Secretary has drastically altered the HFUS Scheme through guidance, rendering the impact of the closure of the UFS all the more severe. [...] The minor changes to the Youth Mobility Scheme and the correction of the minor drafting error can be contained in the Spring Statement of Changes to the Rules to be laid on 14 March 2024.
- Pages
- 22
- Published in
- United Kingdom
