"What are the qualities you see in others that you would most like to have yourselves?"

At a celebration of Catholic Education held at St Mary’s University College, Twickenham, on 17th September, Pope Benedict XVI launched a fitting legacy to his well-loved predecessor, Pope John Paul II. This took place during a school assembly that was broadcast live to over 800,000 school pupils across England, Scotland and Wales.

Thirty two children from school years nine to 11 were selected from state, independent and special needs schools across the UK as a result of having achieved local or national success in sport or who have excelled against the odds and achieved in the sporting field to make a sporting pledge before the Holy Father to engage in sport and “play with the right spirit, enjoy myself, give of my best, respect others, myself and the rules”.

Recognising the enormous potential within sport to foster healthy values and virtues, the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales wish to move beyond the boundaries of sporting excellence found in Catholic schools to encourage greater engagement with, and participation by, Catholics generally in sport. They believe that Catholic teaching has much to offer the sporting world, and that sport, when engaged with appropriately, can offer much in the area of human development.

Pope Benedict XVI said to students: “We live in a celebrity culture, and young people are often encouraged to model themselves on figures from the world of sport or entertainment. My question for you is this: what are the qualities you see in others that you would most like to have yourselves? What kind of person would you really like to be?
“There is always a bigger picture over and above… the different skills you learn. I pray that you too will feel encouraged to practise virtue and to grow in knowledge and friendship with God.

“In view of London’s forthcoming Olympic Games, it has been a pleasure to inaugurate this Sports Foundation, named in honour of Pope John Paul II, and I pray that all will give glory to God through their sporting activities, as well as bringing enjoyment to themselves and others.”

Commenting on the creation of the Foundation, Archbishop Vincent Nichols said: “With the Olympic Games less than two years away, we have a moment of opportunity and a whole process in which the aspirations of young people, the meanings of habit and routine in their lives, and the whole notion of achieving excellence can begin to be lifted up again.
“Within the 2012 Games there are seeds for all sorts of good ideas and good initiatives. The John Paul II Foundation for Sport is a venture that I am particularly interested in as it uses sport to try and introduce to young and old alike the importance of health, the dignity of our bodies, the care of physical well-being and its spiritual meaning.”

At a time when sports news fills both the front and back pages of newspapers, it is fitting that the John Paul II Foundation for Sport has been established by the Catholic Bishops as a legacy in the UK to the forthcoming 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the life and witness of Pope John Paul II. He was himself a passionate sportsman and spoke 120 times during his pontificate about sport, insistent that sport should have its own unique celebration during the Great Jubilee Year 2000.

The schoolchildren made their pledge before the Pope and later lit their own individual candles which they took back to their schools as a reminder that the Christian faith is something to be passed on, and that Christ is present in and through sport.

Two students from Catholic secondary schools in the shadow of the Olympic site at Stratford in East London spoke of their experience of the Foundation’s launch.

Christopher Achiampong, 15, from St Bonaventure’s Catholic School, Forest Gate trains with Arsenal FC’s Youth Academy. He called the launch “a phenomenal, life-changing experience – a wonderful privilege. This will definitely motivate me to do the very best that I can and to reach my potential.”

Hollie Nwofor, 15, from St Angela’s Catholic School in Forest Gate said: “Quite often young people are negatively perceived by the Media, but The Big Assembly and the launch of the John Paul II Foundation for Sport proves that there are hundreds and thousands of young Catholics that want to do good and follow the example that the Popes have set so as to make a difference to those around them.”

Detention inherently undesirable and should be considered only as a last resort

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has reiterated the long-held position that detention is inherently undesirable and should be considered only as a last resort.

UNHCR made the call in its new report on the quality of decision-making in the Detained Fast Track (DFT), where asylum applications are processed under accelerated procedures in a detained environment.

Whilst acknowledging improvements in the work of the UK Border Agency (UKBA), the study highlights significant issues with the quality of decision-making.

Where asylum claims are determined under accelerated procedures, adequate and well-functioning safeguards must be in place to guarantee fairness and quality of decision-making, the report says, adding that UKBA’s own quality assurance mechanisms should examine the way in which DFT procedures are impacting upon quality of decisions.

The report is the first of UNHCR’s Quality Integration Project and presents findings from an audit of first instance asylum decisions made from January to March 2010 at Yarl’s Wood and Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centres. Many of the findings and recommendations reiterate those made in UNHCR’s June 2008 report on DFT decisions.

UNHCR’s Representative to the UK Roland Schilling, said: “We are pleased the government is trying to make the asylum process fairer and more efficient. But the Detained Fast Track may be denying a fair and humane asylum procedure to some of the most vulnerable people, including victims of torture.”

The report notes that complex claims are routinely entering into the fast-tracked process and are not always handled in a way that is gender-sensitive. Although around a third of cases are eventually removed, this high proportion indicates that the DFT is not functioning in a way that ensures that difficult cases are screened out. This, in turn, can impact detrimentally upon the quality of the decisions made as complexities are not addressed sufficiently.

Despite efforts to improve training of UKBA staff, UNHCR finds that decision-makers’ assessment of the merits of each case remains poor because of the heavy burden of proof placed on applicants.

“Asylum seekers are often held to an evidentiary standard that is unreasonable under both UK and international asylum law,” said Schilling. “This is especially troubling given the conditions of detention and the short time frame for asylum interviews and decisions.”

Other issues identified by the report include lack of interview preparation, insufficient use of country information to assess the credibility of a claim, and poor analysis of whether an applicant’s experiences constitute persecution according to the criteria of the 1951 Refugee Convention.

UNHCR welcomed initiatives such as the Early Legal Advice Pilot which facilitates greater early collaboration between legal representatives and decision-makers to ensure quality decision-making.

Draft directive boosts rights of third-country citizens working in the EU

The European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee has backed a directive calling for creation of a single work and residence permit.

The broad aim of the "single permit" directive is to stop the exploitation of foreign labour by boosting the rights of third-country citizens working in the EU.

The directive will dovetail with the EU blue card, which is designed to facilitate legal immigration where it meets the needs of the European labour market. It will allow citizens of non-EU countries to obtain a work permit and a residence permit through a single procedure at a one-stop shop.

The holder of a single permit would also acquire the right to travel through other Member States. Any decision to reject an application for a permit would have to be justified and there would be a right of appeal in accordance with national law.

The draft directive does not affect the rules on the admission of non-EU citizens, which are decided by the Member States. However, it guarantees them certain core rights and gives them a secure legal status, as a safeguard against exploitation.

The legislation does not cover seasonal labourers (who are the subject of a different draft law) or applicants for international protection.

The directive seeks to ensure equal treatment between workers from non-EU states and national workers in areas such as pay, working hours and conditions, training and social security. However, the Member States can restrict equal treatment in certain circumstances, for example by requiring proof of a thorough knowledge of the language in order to follow education or training courses.

Members of the Civil Liberties Committee believe it is up to the Member States to decide whether an application for a single permit should be lodged in the non-EU country or the Member State of destination.

If the application is not lodged in a non-EU country, it will have to be made by the applicant's employer. 

The Civil Liberties Committee's report, drafted by MEP Véronique Mathieu, was adopted on 28th September by 41 votes to 8, with 2 abstentions.

Green: "We are fully committed to reduce the level of net migration back down to the levels of the 1990s"

The government will rigorously defend any legal challenge on its interim migrant limit, Immigration Minister Damian Green has said.

The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) is trying to bring a judicial review against the government, but the courts have not yet granted permission to proceed to a judicial review.

The JCWI claims that the limit has been put in place without proper consultation, and the level of the limit has not been placed before Parliament.

Mr. Green said: “We will rigorously defend this challenge and are confident of success. The government has been clear: we will introduce our permanent annual limit on economic migrants from outside the EU from April 2011.

“While we decide how the annual limit should operate, it is imperative that we have interim measures in place to avoid a rush of applications from migrants before the new rules take effect.

“We are fully committed to reduce the level of net migration back down to the levels of the 1990s - tens of thousands each year, not hundreds of thousands. Introducing a limit on migrants from outside Europe coming here to work is just one of the ways we intend to achieve this.”

On 28th June 2010, the government announced that it would place an interim limit on non-European migrants coming to the UK to live and work. Set at 24,100, the interim limit equates to a 5 per cent reduction compared to the same period last year. At the same time, a consultation was launched on the mechanisms for implementing a permanent annual limit, which is due to be introduced in April 2011.