16 October 2024
The UK recently announced an agreement with Mauritius concerning the BIOT/Chagos Archipelago. The UK Government (UKG) and St Helena Government (SHG) have today reached a cooperation arrangement in relation to future migrants arriving on the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT).
No new migrants have arrived on BIOT since 2022, however, under this contingency arrangement, the UK will transfer future migrants who arrive on BIOT to St Helena where the SHG will assume responsibility for the migrants’ welfare.
This arrangement will apply to any migrants arriving on the BIOT/Chagos Archipelago from today. It will last for 18 months or until a UK agreement with Mauritius concerning the Chagos Archipelago comes into force. At that stage, Mauritius will take responsibility for any future arrivals. Existing migrants on BIOT are not included in this arrangement.
SHG has made clear to UKG that the safety of the island community is paramount. To this end, the Chief Minister has today signed a Memorandum of Understanding that ensures this arrangement includes explicit measures to safeguard St Helena and to minimise any negative impact on St Helena’s community and internal security.
Although no new migrants have arrived since 2022, SHG will ensure the necessary safeguards are in place to facilitate the success of the arrangement if needed. In preparation for potential arrivals, the UKG has agreed to provide an upfront package of training for SHG Immigration and Customs staff.
This is a potential opportunity to raise St Helena’s profile and to leverage support for St Helena’s development. To this end the UKG has agreed to one-off funding of £6.65 million to accelerate the work we have started in health, education and internal IT, including funding to clear our current overseas medical referral waiting list. This is a win-win for both UKG and St Helena and is a clear demonstration of our enhanced partnership values.
The Honourable Julie Thomas, Chief Minister said:
“This arrangement presents a unique opportunity for a British Overseas Territory to be in a position to assist the UK, and we are pleased to be able to work in close partnership with the UK Government towards a mutually beneficial solution.”
“The additional support that will be provided from the UK Government as a result of this arrangement will further strengthen our border controls to manage incoming migrants, and will also present the opportunity to invest in core services and to build and maintain a coherent community underpinned by a vibrant economy, which over time reduces St Helena’s reliance on external aid”.
St Helena has always been forward leaning in supporting the UKG, in times of need, recognising that we are an integral part of the British family. This is another example of St Helena stepping up to the plate in the same way as we did in 1982 when our lifeline the RMS St Helena was utilised as a supply ship during the Falklands crisis.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Questions | Answers |
Is the arrangement compliant with international law? | Yes, UKG has assured SHG that it is compliant. |
Was St Helena Government forced into this arrangement? | No, the arrangement is the result of mutual agreement between SHG and UKG. SHG took the initiative on the drafting of arrangements to ensure that all necessary safeguards for St Helena and our people remained at the forefront of our discussions. |
Will this affect St Helena’s aim to attract tourists? | St Helena is a great tourist destination and the UKG is already supporting SHG to develop tourism through a tourism development fund. We were upfront with the UKG regarding our desire to protect our integrity and reputation in the international arena. We do not see this arrangement impacting negatively on our tourism plans or our community. |
What are the safeguards? | The UKG and SHG will screen all potential migrants prior to arrival on St Helena. UKG will provide upfront training and thereafter ongoing support to St Helena’s Border Control team. All arrivals will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis and in line with St Helena’s Immigration Control provisions. Accommodation, including appropriate reception arrangements for migrants will be funded by UKG. |
What happens if this goes wrong? | UKG will work with St Helena to address specific concerns and put in place appropriate mitigation and support. In the event of an unresolvable issue the arrangement can be terminated. |
Can we turn people away? | The UKG and SHG will screen all potential migrants prior to arrival on St Helena. If SHG considers that a migrant presents a problem, or is a danger to the security of SH, they can refuse entry to such individuals. Furthermore there is provision within the current Immigration Ordinance for any migrant to be denied entry if their presence on island is not conducive to the public interest, or is prejudicial to the maintenance of public order or the interests of security. This will also apply to any migrant who has already entered St Helena and who subsequently presents a problem or is a danger to St Helena’s internal security. |
How many people will this apply to? | These arrangements would only apply to any new migrants who arrive from the date of the agreement for the next 18 months or until the UK’s agreement with Mauritius concerning the Chagos archipelago comes into force and Mauritius takes responsibility for any future arrivals. No new migrants have arrived on BIOT since 2022. |
Where will they be housed? | As far as possible, once migrants have been assessed and cleared, we would look to house them within our community. This integration will be funded by the UKG. |
Why did we agree to the Contingency Plan, how will St Helena benefit from this arrangement? | St Helena is in a unique position to be able to help the UKG and this will go a long way to strengthening our reputation and enhancing our partnership within the British family. UKG will provide £6.65M: one-off funding to accelerate the work we have started on health, education and internal IT. This will include funding to clear the current Overseas Medical Referrals (OMR) waiting list. This is a win-win for both UKG and St Helena. This arrangement may further benefit St Helena by increasing the economically active population. |
How will this be funded? Does this mean that our recurrent budget will now have to cover potential migrants? Do we have the capability to cope? | Any migrants who arrive under this arrangement will not present an additional cost for St Helena. We are developing our capability with the support of UKG. We are not preparing to accommodate migrants until it becomes necessary to do so. If the need arises the UKG will then provide support to cover all requirements. |
Will our essential services (health/education/law enforcement) cope with an influx of people? | Specific to this arrangement, the UKG has committed to providing support including additional resource if required for providing essential services. Our essential services are currently under threat due to the increasing number of people leaving the island. This outward migration is negatively impacting our ability to provide critical public services at an acceptable level. Addressing our population decline is the only way to change this trend. |
Will this attract migrants from other countries? | It is possible that other migrants might be attracted to St Helena however we will be better equipped to cope with such as a result of this arrangement. |