Around 300 youngsters could be making their way to the UK within days which means British authorities face a huge task in identifying these children, making contact with their family members, ensuring they have all the right paperwork and also verifying their age.
And it's the checks to verify the asylum seekers are under 18 years of age that have caused controversy among parts of British society, exposing the gaps in compassion and tolerance among people living in the UK.
A call from Conservative MP David Davies for mandatory teeth checks of all child refugees to verify their age prompted outrage from some MPs and members of the public — and even some celebrities.
didn't see any children in the camp, just 000s young men & activists offering advice what to say to get into UK https://t.co/vvNzl08vqI
— David Davies MP (@DavidTCDavies) October 18, 2016
An urgent parliamentary question session surrounding the age-check was called in Parliament where many MPs stood up and cited evidence from the British Dental Association and Royal College of Physician's that said the checks could not accurately determine a child's age and are "unethical."
'Unworkable Red Herring'
Lyn Brown, Labour MP for West Ham told the House that dental checks were wrong "fifty percent of the time," and that the British Dental Association — "the members who would carry out the checks say they would be inappropriate and unethical."
Mrs. Brown said the checks were an "unworkable red herring"
The treatment by some towards these young refugees is hideously racist and utterly heartless. What's happening to our country?
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) October 18, 2016
Immigration minister, Robert Goodwill sought to reassure MPs that all individuals were being interviewed by UK and French officials who when faced with processing an application for an asylum seekers with no identification documents, "will use physical appearance and demeanor to define the age process."
'Inaccurate, Inappropriate, Unethical'
Mr. Goodwill agreed that a "significant number of people have spoken out against such checks," which he said the British Dental Association has said are "inaccurate, inappropriate and unethical," and that the Home Office "does not use dental x-rays to determine the age of those seeking asylum."
Immigration Minister Robert Goodwill is responding to @PhilipDaviesMP's urgent question on the age of child refugees pic.twitter.com/3OzzSqfkkL
— Dods Monitoring (@dodsmonitoring) October 21, 2016
It's understood around 40 children have arrived in the UK this week from France but the British government has insisted that the child refugees from the Calais camp will not face dental checks to verify their age.
"We do not use dental X-rays to confirm the ages of those seeking asylum in the UK," the Home Office said.
However during the urgent question session in the House of Commons, Conservative MP Philip Davies MP asked why the Home Office still had information relating to dental age assessments on its website for vetting individuals if it was "deemed unethical in this instance?"
Urgent Question from @PhilipDaviesMP to @ukhomeoffice about age checks for child refugees is starting. Watch live https://t.co/9JGDdL6Btw
— House of Commons (@HouseofCommons) October 21, 2016
Pictures recently appeared in the British press of asylum seekers walking into the home office assessment center with blankets over their heads to shield their identity yet in some cases, fanning the flames of intolerance in some corners of Britain that some of the refugees applying for asylum in Britain aren't children — but young adults.
Meanwhile Conservative MP David Davies has reiterated his concerns about the age of asylum seekers arriving in Britain — adding another issue which relates to their gender. In a recent radio interview Mr. Davies asked, "Where are all the women and young girls?"
Britain has agreed to re-settle 200 unaccompanied children in Calais who have family in the UK.
