Priti Disgusting
A comparison between prisoners and asylum seekers
Prisoners in the UK get free meals, toiletries and, when needed, clothes. Meals include at least one hot meal a day. Some establishments provided bread, toasters, microwaves and kettles for prisoners to freely use on the wings. Some provide food for the prisoners to cook for themselves in proper kitchens. See
https://www.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk/hmiprisons/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/09/ Life-in-prison-Food-Web-2016.pdf
When they first claim asylum, many asylum seekers are housed in hotel rooms where they aren’t allowed to have microwaves or other electrical equipment (beyond phone and laptop chargers if they are lucky enough to have these). They are provided with cold meals only, some of which need to be heated but they have nothing to heat them with. Toiletries and clothes are not provided. This can continue for many months.
To quote one of our members:
“Living in an hotel as an asylum seeker can be frustrating. First of all, the food they serve to us which include, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Unfortunately the food is not fresh and healthy. Moreover, it has a bad smell which illustrates it not fresh at all. Unfortunately, I have made couple of complains but nothing has changed. Since my arrival, I was expecting to have a normal life at least. But it is hard since the food is not good at all. I have lost about 4 kg. There are many things which made frustrating. The first thing is I do not have a fridge and a microwave. It is so hard for me to stock some food in the room. There are also no shampoo or body washes and deodorant which are necessities. These things have effected my mental and physical health. What I need is just healthy meals.”
Unlike asylum seekers, prisoners can also work in prison or engage in education. Whether working or studying, they are paid £10-£20 a week. They are allowed to spend between £10 and £25.50 of what they earn each week. See
https://www.doingtime.co.uk/how-prisons-work/how-do-prisons-actually-work/canteen-a nd-money/
Prisoners in an open prison can even go to work outside the prison. Asylum seekers cannot work and opportunities to study are very limited. They do not get paid. In theory they are given an allowance of £8 a week by the Home Office but in recent months the Home Office has failed to pay even this pittance for months on end, and the Home Office seems to withhold payment deliberately in order to make an asylum seeker’s life even more intolerable. They can go out, although there is usually a curfew at night, but with no money most have nowhere to go.
Who is better off? A convicted criminal or an asylum seeker? Who does the government rate more highly? Why?
Michael Mark
