New report examines how linguistic and cultural errors undermine justice in immigration tribunals

https://www.ein.org.uk/news/new-report-examines-how-linguistic-and-cultural-errors-undermine-justice-immigration-tribunals

2 July 2026

New report examines how linguistic and cultural errors undermine justice in immigration tribunals

A new report by the Public Law Project (PLP) details how cultural, linguistic and procedural barriers continue to undermine access to justice in the UK's immigration and asylum tribunals.

You can download the 33-page report here.

PLP explained: "[The] report examines how the accessibility and accuracy of interpretation and translation, the quality of evidence on country context and the ability to understand it, and procedural constraints affect access to justice in immigration and asylum tribunals. The report's central argument is that cultural and linguistic understanding lies at the heart of asylum and immigration tribunals, thereby making cultural competence a procedural fairness matter."

Read more here: https://www.ein.org.uk/news/new-report-examines-how-linguistic-and-cultural-errors-undermine-justice-immigration-tribunals

https://publiclawproject.org.uk/content/uploads/2026/06/Cultural-Linguistic-and-Procedural-Barriers.pdf

PQ: 2 July 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-06-23.12240.h

Asylum: Appeals

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 2 July 2026.

 

Lee Anderson Reform UK, Ashfield

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the total cost to the public purse of (a) translation and (b) interpretation for foreign languages with regards to asylum claim appeals.

 

Sarah Sackman The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice

The Ministry of Justice holds some, but not all, of the information requested. The information available for the most recent full financial year is set out below.

Interpretation spend in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber (asylum claim appeals) for FY25/26 was as follows:

FY	Interpretation spend
FY25/26	£5,811,761

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-06-23.12239.h

Asylum: Translation Services

Home Office written question – answered at on 2 July 2026.

 

Lee Anderson Reform UK, Ashfield

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what data her department holds on the total cost to the public purse of (a) translation and (b) interpretation for foreign languages with regards to the asylum process.

Alex Norris The Minister of State, Home Department

The information requested is not centrally held and could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

 

"a Tamil translator was unable to be secured"

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/tipton-shops-fate-over-missing-34213185

1 July 2026

Tipton shop's fate over 'missing lottery reward' delayed over translator

[…] Sandwell Council’s licensing committee met to review the shop’s licence at a hearing on June 30 but was forced to adjourn the meeting after a Tamil translator was unable to be secured for shop licence holder Vincent Shaanmugarajah Thamilnesan.

Duncan Craig, the solicitor representing Mr Thamilnesan, said that while the shop owner spoke and understood English, the Tamil translator was required to ensure he carried out his job properly.

Reform councillor Karl Leech questioned the cost of hiring a translator and whether the hearing could go ahead without one but after listening to legal advice it was agreed to adjourn the meeting. The hearing is set to reconvene on July 10.

West Midlands Police said Mr Thamilnesan had been questioned under caution with the help of a translator. [...]

PQ: 26 June 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-06-18.11236.h

Department for Education: Translation Services

Department for Education written question – answered at on 26 June 2026.

Andrew Snowden Opposition Assistant Whip (Commons)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department spent on translation services in each of the last five financial years.

Olivia Bailey Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The amounts that the department spent on translation services in the years between 1 April 2022 and 18 June 2026 are as follows:

Financial Year	Spend on Translation Services
2022/23	£7,933.47
2023/24	£2,023.20
2024/25	£1,159.02
2025/26	£21,732.82
2026/27 (to 18 June 2026)	£3,766.93
Total Spend	£36,615.44

The much higher spend in year 2025/26 was driven principally by three specific items of translation spend:

(i) Safeguarding guidance aimed at parents relating to children in out-of-school settings.

(ii) Consultation documents affecting disabled students into British Sign Language.

(iii) UK hosted summit on artificial intelligence safety in education, requiring translation services for overseas delegates.

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-court-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2026

Published 25 June 2026

Criminal court statistics quarterly: January to March 2026

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-court-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2026

PQ: 18 June 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=2026-06-18a.991.0#g1006.3

Business of the House

– in the House of Commons at 11:02 am on 18 June 2026.

Mary Glindon Labour, Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend

My constituent Abdul faced three on-the-day cancellations of his asylum interview because of challenges securing an interpreter. He then had a fourth interview, in his second language, in which he is not proficient. He is now appealing his decision on the basis that he was unable to answer questions to the best of his ability. With his appeal date next month, he faces his fifth trip to London without an interpreter being present. Will the Leader of the House ask the relevant Minister to make a statement on what steps the Government are taking to tackle interpreter-related interview cancellations for people like Abdul?

PQ: 16 June 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-05-13.197.h

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Publicity

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government written question – answered at on 16 June 2026.

James Cleverly Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 18 March 2026, to Question 116483, on MHCLG: Publicity, if he will list each supplier which has undertaken translation activities for the department since July 2024; and the amount of expenditure on each supplier.

Samantha Dixon Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Since July 2024 the Department has spent £172,362.29 on translation activities to the following suppliers:

Aa Global Language Services Limited	£105,549.12
Allied Publicity Services (Manchester)	£6,973.01
D A Languages LTD	£23,240.04
FCDO Services	£8,583.19
Mencap	£180.00
Prysg CYF	£13,358.30
Salina Interpreting & Translating Services	£6,932.00
Trosol	£7,546.63
Total	£172,362.29

These translation services largely support the department’s engagement with bereaved families, survivors and local residents affected by the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy. The services also support a range of departmental activity, including resettlement schemes (such as those for people fleeing the war in Ukraine) and Welsh language translation.

PQ: 15 June 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-06-10.8739.h

UK Border Force: Interviews

Home Office written question – answered at on 15 June 2026.

Rupert Lowe Restore Britain, Great Yarmouth

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in what proportion of asylum and immigration interviews conducted by Border Force via (a) video call and (b) telephone-only are translators or interpreters used.

Rupert Lowe Restore Britain, Great Yarmouth

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what processes are in place to (a) monitor, (b) audit, and (c) quality assure the work of translators and interpreters used in asylum and immigration interviews conducted by Border Force.

Rupert Lowe Restore Britain, Great Yarmouth

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many complaints or concerns have been raised regarding the accuracy of translation or interpretation services used in asylum and immigration interviews conducted by Border Force in each of the last five years.

Mike Tapp The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department

The Home Office uses professional interpretation and translation services to support asylum, immigration and wider operational processes. These services are delivered through centrally managed arrangements, including the Interpreter and Language Services Unit (ILSU), as well as through contracted suppliers.

Quality assurance and contract governance arrangements are in place to uphold standards, monitor performance and support continuous improvement. This includes defined internal standards and structured quality frameworks to identify errors and ensure service quality. Where concerns are raised, they are considered carefully and, where appropriate, investigated on a case-by-case basis. The Home Office is committed to ensuring that interpretation services meet appropriate quality standards across all delivery routes.

Data on the proportion of asylum and immigration interviews conducted by Border Force via (a) video call and (b) telephone-only where interpreters or translators are used is not held in published statistics. This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

PQ: 9 June 2025

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2025-06-04.57487.h

Courts: Translation Services

Ministry of Justice written question – answered at on 9 June 2025.

Shockat Adam Independent, Leicester South

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate she has made of the increase in court translator costs in each region in England and Wales in the last five year.

Shockat Adam Independent, Leicester South

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate she has made of the cost of off-contract bookings for interpreter bookings in the last five years.

Shockat Adam Independent, Leicester South

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what comparative estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) off-contract bookings and (b) contract-based interpreter services.

Sarah Sackman The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice

We do not hold spend data for each region. Total annual spend across all 4 language services contracts, with % increases have been calculated and set out below:

Year	Total	Year on Year % increase	Total Growth (since 2020)	Sitting Days (Financial Year)
2020	£20,217,548.09	-	-	2020/21 – 199,200
2021	£25,062,618.71	24%	24%	2021/22 – 559,888
2022	£26,883,747.04	7%	33%	2022/23 – Over 565,000
2023	£30,374,050.44	13%	50%	2023/24 – Over 580,000
2024	£31,625,158.35	4%	56%	2024/25 - TBC

Off-contract spend:

Year	Total
2020	£1,193,788
2021	£2,157,759
2022	£4,856,616
2023	£6,565,781
2024	£7,037,731

The use of off-contract is typically to cover requirements that arise at short notice and those that are more challenging to fulfil, such as the requirement for languages that are rare or scarce, and as such are more expensive to source. The use of off-contract interpreters allows hearings to go ahead, to continue the delivery of justice.

The next generation of contracts, currently being procured, includes the use of a secondary supplier of interpreters, specifically to source those short notice bookings, and to bring this spend on-contract, with benefits such as improved data and value for money.

Performance levels can be accessed via the Published statistics, which can be found at: Criminal court statistics - GOV.UK

Comparison (2020–2024)

Year	On-Contract Spend (£)	Off-Contract Spend (£)	Total Spend (£)	% On-Contract	% Off-Contract
2020	£20,217,548	£1,193,788	£21,411,336	94.4%	5.6%
2021	£25,062,619	£2,157,759	£27,220,378	92.1%	7.9%
2022	£26,883,747	£4,856,616	£31,740,363	84.7%	15.3%
2023	£30,374,050	£6,565,781	£36,939,831	82.2%	17.8%
2024	£31,625,158	£7,037,731	£38,662,889	81.8%	18.2%

PQ: 8 June 2026

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2026-06-01.HL420.h

Police: Telephone Services

Home Office written question – answered at on 8 June 2026.

Lord Alton of Liverpool Chair, Human Rights (Joint Committee), Chair, Human Rights (Joint Committee)

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that a public service interpreter working for 101 made political remarks about China in a call with Hong Qi, a Chinese pro-democracy activist; and what action, if any, they plan to take.

Lord Hanson of Flint The Minister of State, Home Department

Matters relating to the conduct of individual police officers, staff, or those working on behalf of the police are for the relevant police force to consider through established complaints procedures. It would therefore not be appropriate to comment on the detail of the case raised.

If an individual believes that a public service interpreter has acted inappropriately during a police interaction, they can make a complaint directly to the relevant police force or via the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Information on how to do so is available on the IOPC’s website at https://www.policeconduct.gov.uk/complaints/submit-a-complaint, including an online complaints form and guidance on the complaints process.