Asylum seekers removed to France include potential victims of slavery, says report

The first group of asylum seekers removed to France under the "one in one out" scheme include potential victims of modern slavery, severely depressed people and those with family in the UK, a report has found.

- Diane Taylor

Humans For Rights Network (HFRN) interviewed those returned after crossing the Channel in small boats in mid-October while they were staying in their initial accommodation - a marquee next to a railway track in Paris.

The research was announced after the Guardian revealed that an Iranian asylum seeker, who was sent to France last month, returned to the UK just 29 days later and is being held in an immigration detention centre.

He has been referred to the national referral mechanism to investigate a claim that he is a victim of trafficking.

The prime minister said yesterday that the government is planning to expedite the man's return to France.

A charity that has maintained contact with some of those returned to France has said that more of them may attempt to return to the UK due to the reception conditions in France.

The UK-France "one in, one out" treaty, which came into force on 6 August, allows the UK to detain and rapidly remove people who enter via small boats. In return, the UK will accept an equal number of people through a newly established safe and legal route.