Don't deny refugees British citizenship – it saved my life

Recently, I met a refugee who, like me, is from Iran, but arrived more recently and via an irregular route.

- GULI FRANCIS-DEHQANI

His words stay with me: "Now, I feel like no matter how hard I try, I'm never really going to be part of this society. It's like I'll always be an outsider who's been added on but doesn't truly belong." When I arrived here as a refugee in 1980, in the wake of the Iranian Revolution, the UK was more welcoming to asylum seekers. I was just 13 and, unlike those arriving today, felt no fear of being judged or attacked because of these painful circumstances. By 16, I was well on the way to being integrated, thanks to the opportunities and encouragement I was given. A year or so later, I was granted citizenship. I don't think I understood the enormous significance.

Now, I am extremely aware of what having British citizenship means - not least because that opportunity is now closed to many refugees.

In February, the Home Office changed the guidance so that those who have arrived in the UK irregularly, such as on a small boat, will be refused citizenship - even after being granted status as a refugee, and regardless of how long they have been here for, or what part they play in British society.

In a move that reflects a deeply unsettling shift in this country's commitment to welcome and tolerance, these changes to regulation imply that if you arrive irregularly to seek safety as a refugee, your character is in question. And therefore you cannot be considered appropriate to be a British citizen.