Jail threat proposed over visas

Relatives could take responsibility for visitors, a report says

Relatives of foreigners who outstay their visas could face imprisonment, under plans put to the Conservatives.

Shadow immigration minister Damian Green said a named sponsor could take "legal responsibility" for making sure visitors return home.

He said this would speed up the system, allowing people from outside the EU to go to events like weddings more easily,

The government is looking at plans to make relatives pay a bond of £1,000 to ensure visitors do not outstay visas.

'Delay and inconvenience'

It is also considering halving their maximum time in the UK from six to three months.

Mr Green's proposals include keeping a government scheme which has paid asylum seekers £36m to set up businesses back in their own countries, as long as it represents value for money.

He said: "The system as it currently operates relies too much on delay and inconvenience for applicants, as a substitute for a robust but responsive system.

"We wish to improve controls by having clear rules enforced by competent specialists. At the same time, we want genuine applicants to be made welcome, treated courteously and competently and dealt with quickly."

This is a proposal too far Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne

A Tory government should also not reverse Labour's 1997 decision to scrap the "primary purpose" rule which barred entry to thousands of foreign nationals married to British citizens, Mr Green said.

He added that there were more effective ways of blocking sham marriages, such as English language tests and a minimum age limit of 21 for foreign spouses.

Millions of pounds spent on translation services for immigrants should instead go into teaching them English, Mr Green said.

His proposals follow an 18-month consultation with minority communities and are part of an ongoing review of immigration for the Conservatives.

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne said jailing someone for another person's misbehaviour was fraught with "ethical and practical difficulties".

"It simply will not work, because courts are not going to convict people who are blameless in every respect except a lack of judgment for trusting a relative who absconds," he said. "This is a proposal too far."

The Home Office says almost 13 million people from outside Europe visited the UK last year - and six out of 10 of them came as tourists.