The Home Office couldn’t even organise a briefing for MPs. Here’s what happened

As a caseworker working in a constituency where at least 43% of the population are not born in the UK, I’ve worked on countless immigration cases. But I’m still left shocked by the dysfunction and absurdity that I’ve witnessed at the Home Office. The Home Office, despite some stiff competition, undoubtedly wins the prize for being the most frustrating department that I’ve had to deal with as a caseworker.  

Most MPs’ offices, regardless of their immigration caseload, will have their own astonishing stories about the Home Office. Our office, for example, has dealt with cases involving victims of human trafficking being made to wait months for a decision on their application, children as young as ten being separated from their parents due to their asylum application being rejected, and of people driven to homelessness after UK Visas & Immigration (UKVI) decided they had no access to public funds. Ask any caseworker about the Home Office’s use of the word ‘complex’ to describe an application and they will groan.

My own experience of trying to interact with the Home Office is in no way unique. I’ve spent countless hours on the phone trying to resolve cases that have been handled exceptionally poorly or trying to dispute decisions that are grossly unfair. I’ve often been put on hold for an hour at a time, only to then find out that phone advisors are poorly briefed on issues even as prevalent as Windrush. Records of our enquiries or phone conversations have been lost by the Home Office with no explanation. Urgent enquiries that our office has made to the Home Office or the ministerial team have been left for months without a response.

It’s safe to say that the relationship between the Home Office, MPs and their staff needs work. The Home Office seem to be aware of this, which is why a meeting for MPs and caseworkers from all parties was held earlier this week, hosted by the Minister for Immigration, Caroline Nokes. The meeting appeared to be a much-welcomed attempt to be more transparent with MPs’ offices and an opportunity for caseworkers to raise their concerns. But it ended up being one of the most surreal meetings of my life.

The meeting was due to be an hour and a half long and attendees were told that there would be time for questions. Instead, we had a 35-minute talk about policy and a vague summary of future engagement opportunities. Caroline Nokes didn’t turn up, though we were told she would be back in time for questions. Only two questions were eventually granted, one being to David Lammy, who spoke for every attendee in the room when he told senior Home Office officials in no uncertain terms that their organisation is plagued by chronic mismanagement and ineptitude.

After granting one more question, attendees were told that the room booking had ended and the meeting was over – an hour ahead of schedule. Instead, hilariously, attendees were to raise their concerns by filling in a short feedback form. As one might expect, this enraged those who had taken time out to attend, including some who had travelled all the way from Scotland. The end of the meeting then descended into chaos as attendees were quickly shuffled out of the room and some started heckling Home Office staff, who stood there speechless. Somewhat ironically, Caroline Nokes arrived at this point.

The meeting reads like a rejected plot line from The Thick of It, but it highlights a much more sinister and absurd reality, which is that the Home Office is too dysfunctional to be effectively held accountable by Members of Parliament. Whilst this a prevalent issue for long-suffering caseworkers who are consequentially unable to perform their role properly, it has wider ramifications for the general public and undermines the role that MPs should have in their constituency. This should not be a party political issue, but one that should deeply concern every parliamentary representative who intends to effectively hold the government to account. If your MP is unable to effectively hold the Home Office to account, who can?

This piece was written by a caseworker for Andy Slaughter MP.