Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Bill

My Lords, I also support these amendments. I have an amendment in this group—Amendment No. 35, which would delete Clauses 40 and 41. I go slightly beyond the concerns of other speakers in that I am also concerned about extending these powers to customs and police officers. This is important work because it relates to vulnerable children arriving in this country. Over a period, immigration officers have developed considerable expertise and we all need reassurance that that will not be lost. Let us consider the journey of a child coming to this country in these circumstances. Sometimes they do not know what country they have arrived in. Sometimes their trafficker will tell them that the alien officials are villains and are cruel and unkind and they should be avoided. Their experience of officials in their own country may be very unhappy. I will give the example of a young man from Afghanistan whom I will call Abdul. All his immediate family were killed when he was aged 11. He spent four years travelling in Pakistan and at the age of 15 he arrived in Nottingham in a lorry with his uncle. He was very disoriented and unwell. He is the kind of person these officers may come across. We must be sure that they are well equipped to act with compassion, consideration and understanding in these circumstances. The Minister is likening this reform to that which has occurred in teaching and other areas. In teaching, less qualified individuals are allowed to do the more mundane work so that the full expertise of the teacher is used more effectively and efficiently. My understanding is akin to that of the noble Lord, Lord Avebury. Already it is possible to farm out the less sophisticated work to individuals, not immigration officers. When, for instance, a heartbeat is found in a lorry, that less qualified person goes to the immigration officer and says, ““Look, there is somebody in there. We need you to come in and detain, search and hold this person””. The expertise appears already to be used most effectively and therefore I do not see why this provision is necessary. If the Minister wishes to persevere with this reform, I should be grateful if she could give a number of reassurances. It would be helpful if these new officers came under Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, which puts a duty on authorities to proceed with regard to the promotion of the well-being of children. If every individual had an enhanced Criminal Record Bureau check before they started work, that would be helpful. If they had a certificated qualification in the handling of children, that would be a reassurance. If the local safeguarding children board was alerted immediately these children were found and there was an approach to a child protection officer, that would be helpful. If the Minister will continue to ensure that the Children’s Commissioner is fully consulted on the importance of this reform, that would be helpful. A report from the senior immigration officer at the scene within 24 hours of a child being found would be helpful. Finally, perhaps the Minister would write to me on how the monitors who will supervise the contracts will be equipped to judge whether contractors are doing a good and sensitive job when it comes to managing children. The noble Lord, Lord Avebury, highlighted concerns about accountability on two grounds. First, at the juxtaposed controls, which authority is responsible for these children? Secondly, which contractors hold the main responsibility? Clarification on who would be accountable for these children at the juxtaposed controls is necessary and I hope that the Minister can provide that. I look forward to her response.