UK govt softens ‘immigration rules’

LONDON: Illegal immigrants who survived a fire that killed about 80 people in a social housing block in London will be given a clear path to obtaining permanent residency in Britain, the By AFPgovernment said on Wednesday.

But critics including the local member of parliament said people whose lives were devastated by the disaster should be given indefinite leave to remain now and the government’s announcement would merely add to their confusion and despair. The 24-storey Grenfell Tower, which was home to many immigrants and people from ethnic minorities, was gutted on June 14 in an inferno that started in the middle of the night and engulfed the whole building with devastating speed.

The tower is located in a deprived estate within one of London’s richest boroughs, and the disaster prompted a wave of soul-searching about inequality and neglect of poor communities. Some of the approximately 250 people who made it out of the building alive did not have the legal right to live in Britain and have been reluctant to make themselves known to the authorities.

The government had previously said that if they came forward, those people would be given leave to remain legally in Britain for 12 months -- a stance criticised as ungenerous to people whose lives had been devastated by the tragedy.

"The government believes it is right to provide this specific group of survivors greater certainty over their long-term future in the UK, subject to the necessary security and criminality checks being met," Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said in a statement.