Walthamstow Stansted 15 protester speaks out about the failings of due care by the government towards migrants

As Home Secretary Sajid Javid continues to face backlash for his handling of the migrant crisis, Melanie Strickland has condemned the government's treatment of those coming to the UK for work and asylum seekers.

Alongside 14 others, Ms Strickland chose to support vulnerable people being deported in an action on March 28 where the group cut through the Stansted Airport perimeter fence and locked themselves together around a chartered plane.

She said: "We received information that there were people on that plane that shouldn't have been: vulnerable people who had claimed asylum because their lives depended on staying in the UK.

"There was one woman who was a lesbian and was being sent to Nigeria, which has some of the most oppressive laws in the world for LGBT people.

"There was also another young man who lived in the UK with his British parents. He was being told to go back to Nigeria despite not having any family there.

"In all cases of the people on that plane had been here for many years - their whole lives were here."

Ms Strickland joined Walthamstow Migrants' Support Centre more than two years ago to help these vulnerable migrants.

She said: "We've met some of the people from the plane now and we have no regrets about what we did.

"We exposed a massive government scandal that is at the heart of this government.

"We now know that the government has been deporting people en masse on a routine basis – many of these people had claims that had not been heard properly. In doing so, the Home Office has shown contempt for rule of law and due process.

"Sixty people were on that plane and 11 are still here fighting for their right to stay."

Ms Strickland submitted freedom of information requests and found that 11 people meant to be on the charter flight to Nigeria and Ghana are still in the country, and three of them claim to have dependent children.

She also discovered that two people have been granted the right to remain as of December 12 and a third has been issued with a residency card as a relative of a European Economic Area citizen.

Records published by the Home Office show 33 individuals from the March 28 charter flight were deported on March 30 2017, with 16 others removed between then and September 27 2017.

The 35-charity worker said: "The home office books the flights in advance and they hate when space is wasted which means people are unfairly sent away.

"Not everyone gets access to a lawyer because they do not have the wherewithal to organise it or do not get enough time.

"There's a minimum notice period of only five days for deportation and immigration law is extremely complicated - requiring specialist lawyers in most cases.

"In Waltham Forest there are no law firms offering immigration advice on a legal aid basis.

"Immigration advice typically costs thousands of pounds and people who visit the centre simply can't afford this.

"So unless you have the money or are extremely lucky most people will be kicked out of the country."

Asylum seekers are allowed to ask for somewhere to live and/or a cash allowance from the state.

Each person per household is given £37.75 each week to buy food, clothing and toiletries.

Pregnant mothers and children aged one to three are entitled to an additional £3, whereas babies under one year old an extra £5 per week.

Ms Strickland said: "Many people going through the immigration process suffer serious mental health problems because they cannot get on with their lives and feel constantly threatened by the Home Office.

"The Waltham Forest Migrant Action centre does food bank referrals for the majority of people who visit because they don't have enough to eat and have no money for food.

"Most people who visit the centre want to work but many are unable to because of the terms of their via prohibits them from doing so."

The Stansted 15 were found guilty of an aviation security at Chelmsford Crown Court after their action at Stansted Airport on March 28, 2017.

The protesters were initially charged with aggravated trespass and a breach of Stansted by-laws, but later the charge was amended to part of the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990 - a terrorism offence.

This amended charge carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The sentencing is expected to begin the week commencing February 4, 2019.

For instance, the Stansted 15 have been hailed as "human rights defenders" by Amnesty International.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We only return those with no legal right to remain in the UK, including foreign national offenders and failed asylum seekers.

“Victims of trafficking and modern slavery are referred to the National Referral Mechanism, which is a framework for identifying victims of human trafficking or modern slavery and ensuring they receive the appropriate support.”

The Home Office added that it expects people to leave the country voluntarily but where they do not, it will seek to enforce their departure and whilst in the National Referral Mechanism individuals cannot generally be removed from the country.

It further said that the Stansted 15 court case was brought by the CPS and ruled upon by the independent judiciary and that the cash allowance for asylum seekers was reviewed each year.