UK unfolds fresh strategy to tackle illegal migration

[Concerned Migrants]

A NEW collaborative finger print regime to curb the growing menace of illegal migration and identify crimes was announced yesterday.   This may mean harder times for citizens from poorer countries who seek greener pastures abroad through irregular movement, especially into the United Kingdom (UK). The British High Commission in Nigeria said yesterday in Abuja that the new fingerprint sharing deal with Canada and Australia would boost the fight against identity fraud that has become prevalent in recent times. It quoted British Home Office as saying that under the new data sharing agreement, the UK will be able to swap fingerprint information of foreign criminals and asylum seekers with these two countries, "making it easier than ever to flag up those migrants who try to hide their past from authorities, while ensuring personal information continues to be protected." According to the High Commission, members of the Five Country Conference have developed the agreement to improve immigration controls and border security. The United States (US) is expected to join shortly, while New Zealand is considering legislation to join in the future. Under the new arrangement, each country will have the same ability to check fingerprints and for the first year of the agreement, each country will be able to share 3,000 sets of fingerprints with partner countries. This will rise as the deal rolls out. The High Commission further said: "The collaboration will make it easier to detect those people with previous criminal histories in other countries, as well as speed up removals and establish previously unknown identities." UK Border Agency Deputy Chief Executive, Jonathan Sedgwick, added: "We have one of the toughest borders in the world and we are determined to ensure it stays that way...We are continuing to expand our watch-lists, work more closely with foreign governments to share information, and speed up the re-documentation of those being removed. "This new agreement will help us identify and remove individuals, whose identities were previously unknown, but also improve public safety through better detection of lawbreakers and those coming to the UK for no good."   http://odili.net/news/source/2009/aug/22/17.html