Every month we publish a thought-leadership piece from an expert in the sector. Each article has been commissioned and reviewed by ILPA’s Editorial Advisory Board. New blog posts are available for everyone to read for a month, with ILPA members having access to all our previous posts; if you are not yet an ILPA member, you can find out more about joining us here. The full range of posts can be seen below.
Crimes of Arrival: an Entirely Arbitrary Approach to Prosecution
BY FRANCESCA PARKES
9 April 2025
The Border Security, Immigration and Asylum Bill proposes to introduce new offences which target people arriving in the UK on ‘small boats’. However, the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 already created a new offence which can be applied to anyone arriving or attempting to arrive without a valid entry clearance from France or Belgium. Francesca Parkes, Senior Caseworker and Northern France Coordinator at Refugee Legal Support, explains how Section 24 D1 of the Immigration Act 1971 is currently being used arbitrarily to prosecute people arriving on small boats, the lack of defences, and how the Government could amend the Bill to improve the situation. Read more >
A Dangerous Journey?: The Good Character Requirement, Naturalisation, Trafficking, and Discrimination against Women
BY CATHERINE BRIDDICK
5 March 2025
With International Women’s Day being marked on 8 March, human rights and refugee law scholar, Catherine Briddick, considers the Home Office’s latest guidance on the good character requirement in nationality applications and explains how the revisions disadvantage women. Read more >
Forty Years of ILPA
BY ADRIAN BERRY, ELSPETH GUILD AND ALISON STANLEY
12 February 2025
As ILPA marks its 40th anniversary, Patrons Adrian Berry, Elspeth Guild and Alison Stanley reflect on some of ILPA’s key achievements over the years and explain why ILPA’s intense mix of policy work and service to members makes it distinct among professional membership organisations. Read more >
Rescuing Love from the Hostile Environment
BY MATTEO BESANA
22 January 2025
By keeping families apart, the UK’s strict family migration rules, including the minimum income requirement, are harming people’s relationships, financial stability, mental health and well-being, with significant long-term implications, not least for children. Matteo Besana, Advocacy and Campaigns Manager at Reunite Families UK, outlines the findings of their recent research and considers ways in which the system could be improved. Read more >
On the Rise: Illegal Working Penalties
BY EMMA HARRIS
17 December 2024
The recent crackdown against illegal working can prove costly for employers issued with a penalty for employing an illegal worker, especially where the employer is an individual. Emma Harris, barrister at Goldsmith Chambers, sets out the issues to consider when challenging a civil penalty notice. Read more >
Bearing a Disproportionate Burden: Climate and Migration Injustice
BY BERIVAN GUNES
13 November 2024
As COP29 gets underway in Baku, ILPA’s Legal and Parliamentary Officer, Berivan Gunes, touches on some of the limitations, and also the use of, international refugee law principles for those in need of protection as a result of climate change, and suggests some ways to address the key issues surrounding this deepening humanitarian emergency. Read more >
Stemming the Tide: The Case for Demarketising the Legal Aid Sector
BY DR JO WILDING
6 November 2024
Latest figures reveal that for the first time there was a net decline in the number of immigration and asylum legal aid providers in the September 2024 commencement of new contracts, despite the gulf between need and provision continuing to grow. Dr Jo Wilding, Researcher and Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Sussex, unpicks the figures and explains why the current legal aid contract structure is no longer fit for purpose and should be demarketised as a matter of urgency. Read more >
Attracting and retaining legal talent in immigration law: the SQE route to qualification
BY SARAH FELLOWS
9 October 2024
The Solicitors Qualifying Examination route to qualification, and specifically the element of qualifying work experience, presents an ideal opportunity for organisations to grow new and existing legal talent and to address the demands of both their business and their clients. Sarah Fellows, education and training advisor of legal services advisory firm Hook Tangaza, sets out how the new route works and explains how it can benefit organisations specialising in immigration law. Read more >
The State of Play: Immigration Law in Sport
BY GLYN LLOYD
11 September 2024
As 2024’s Summer of Sport draws to a close, Glyn Lloyd, Managing Partner at Newfields, provides an insight into the work and approach of a sport immigration lawyer, drawn from his many years’ experience of working with leading sport governing bodies, clubs, athletes and agents. Read more >
Reviving Regional Mobility: Options for the New Government
BY ELSPETH GUILD, ALISON STANLEY, ADRIAN BERRY AND NATASHA GYA WILLIAMS
10 July 2024
Following the result of the General Election of 4 July 2024, ILPA Patrons Elspeth Guild, Adrian Berry and Alison Stanley, and Natasha Gya Williams set out some practical options for the new Labour Government and explain why re-opening regional mobility with Europe would kickstart economic growth. Read more >