Fully grown asylum seekers are being classed as children as “mistakes are made”, according to human rights lawyer Shoaib Khan.
He joined Martin Daubney on GB News to react to the Home Office wrongly assessing more than 1,300 child migrants as adults.
Figures shared to ITV News showed that with 2022 data, over 1,300 children were wrongly assessed to be adults by the Home Office over a period of 18 months.
Khan told GB News that it is “without debate” that the same mistake is being made when classifying adults.
Shoaib Khan says there is 'no debate' that 'mistakes are made'
GETTY / GB NEWS
“I’m sure there are mistakes”, he said.
“I don’t think that’s really a matter of debate or contention. I’m sure there is.
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Migrant crisis: More than 1,300 asylum seekers have been wrongly assessed to be adults
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Shoaib Khan joined Martin Daubney on GB News
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“The whole point is, what side do you want to be erring on? What is the best approach to take when in doubt? What do you do?
“Do you decide that a child should be put in prison or a detention?”
The report suggests nearly 500 child refugees were placed in detention centres or in unsupervised adult accommodation.
Children as young as 14 were among those judged to be adults.
Other findings show 485 children referred to local authorities in England between January 2023 and June 2023 were found to be under 18 and had to be immediately removed from unsafe facilities.
According to Government statistics, in the year to June 2023 there were 5,186 asylum applications for unaccompanied children arriving in the UK.
In a statement to ITV News, a spokesperson for the Home Office said: “Age assessments can be challenging and there is no single method which can determine a person’s age with precision.
"Many individuals arriving in the UK who claim to be children often don’t have clear evidence like an original passport or identity document to back this up.
“We are strengthening our age assessment process, including establishing the National Age Assessment Board and specifying scientific methods of age assessments.
“Measures under the Illegal Migration Act will ensure the swift removal of individuals who have been assessed as adults and who have no right to remain in the UK.”