UK govt has 'racial, religious bias' against Bangladeshi, Pakistani visa applicants: British MP

Imran Hussain, the Labour MP for Bradford East, has raised claims of racial or religious bias at the United Kingdom Home Office over visitor visa applications submitted from Bangladesh and Pakistan.

"According to the Home Office's own figures, of the total accepted and rejected visitor visa applications, just under 20% ended up as rejected," said Imran on Tuesday (15 November), reports The Telegraph.

He added, "Yet when it comes to those of Pakistani and Bangladeshi nationality, these figures suddenly, dramatically and unexplainably rise to 30%. So does the minister really expect us to believe that there is no racial or religious bias at the Home Office?"

Meanwhile, UK's Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick shot back at the Labour MP's claims and said, "(He) is completely wrong and that is a baseless slur on my officials at the Home Office.

"All visa applications are based on objective criteria and I would add there were, in fact, 303,000 visas and permits granted for family members in the year ending June 2022 – which is 61% more than in 2019.

"So the Home Office is granting record numbers of these visas and we do so in an entirely objective fashion," he remarked.

Anyone who needs a standard visitor visa must apply online before travelling to the UK and attend an appointment at a visa application centre. The earliest date for applications is three months before you travel.