Home Office mistakenly gives British history expert at London University a month to leave UK

Dr Eva Johanna Holmberg tells The Independent she 'couldn't believe what she was seeing'

Eva Johanna Holberg said she "couldn't believe what she was seeing" when she received a letter from the Home Office stating that she is 'liable to be detained' (Queen Mary University)

A Finnish historian who works and pays taxes in the UK, was told by the government that she had one month to leave the country, in what subsequently emerged to be an administrative error affecting scores of people.

Eva Johanna Holmberg, a research fellow in British culture at Queen Mary University of London, received a letter from the Home Office stating that the decision had been taken to "remove her from the UK" because she had "failed to provide evidence that [she was] exercising Treaty rights".

It said that the 40-year-old academic was therefore “liable to be detained” and warned that if she failed to leave voluntarily, directions would be given for her "removal" from the UK to Finland.

Dr Holmberg told The Independent she "couldn't believe what she was seeing" when she read the document and assumed it must be another administrative error.

“It came out of the blue, there’s no reason for it," she said. "I tried to correct it by calling the Home Office to find out if it was an administrative error, but they just sent me from phone line to phone line then advised me to call my MP.

“I work here, being seconded by Helinski University, but like many others here I am a visiting academic affiliated with a UK university. This is normal for academics especially if you’re studying British history. It’s vital for my work.

She added: “I opened it and it had the words ‘the decision has been made to remove you’. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.”

The same letter was wrongly sent to around 100 people in the UK, an error the Home Office has said it is “urgently” looking in to.

Dr Holmberg has lived and worked in the UK with her British husband since August. She also spent five years living in Britain until 2013.

After the UK government triggered Article 50 in March, she applied for an EU registration certificate for "peace of mind".

But her application was rejected - apparently due to a technicality - and rather than spend money reapplying for the document, which would make no difference to her current status, Dr Holmberg decided she would not appeal.

However, two-months later, she received a second letter from the Home Office stating: “A decision has been taken to remove you from the United Kingdom in accordance with section 10 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.”

It added: “You are therefore a person who is liable to be detained under paragraph 16 of Schedule 2 of the Immigration Act 1971.”

But when she tried to contact the Home Office, she said she was sent between phone lines, and ultimately advised to contact her MP.

Dr Holmberg is now appealing the decision to reject her EU registration certificate and is confident that it will be overturned, particularly with the Home Office's admission that they sent many of the letters out in error.

However, she raised concerns about other people who are sent erroneous deportation notices but who don't have the resources to appeal.

“I’m just worried for others. I have friends and support and resources, but how about those who don’t, those who can’t get a lawyer and sort these things out and say this is completely wrong and out proportion?" she said.

One of her lawyers, Christopher Hussey of Arlingsworth Solicitors, said Dr Holberg's case was "very similar" to a number of cases the firm have successfully dealt with recently.

"We advised Dr Holmberg that the Home Office’s decision was unlawful and have this morning submitted an urgent appeal with the First-Tier Immigration Tribunal, on the basis that the decision to remove her from the UK breaches her rights under EU free movement law," he said.

"The removal decision stems from an earlier decision to refuse her application for a registration certificate, which decision we also consider to be unlawful on the basis that Dr Holmberg is exercising her free movement rights in the UK as a worker.

"Understandably, our client was left incredibly distressed by the prospect of being removed from the UK; away from her family, her house and her job."

Mr Hussey added that, following the Home Office's admission that they had made an "administrative blunder" by sending out the removal notice to Dr Holmberg and other EU nationals, their client should proceed with her appeal until she has received formal written confirmation from the Home Office that the removal notice has been withdrawn.

"Clearly, the Home Office should be held accountable for this most appalling mistake," he said.

The academic did as she was advised and contacted her local MP, Green Party co-leader Caroline Lucas, who accused the Government of “callously playing hard ball over Brexit”.

Ms Lucas, who has since contacted the Home Office regarding the situation, said: “It beggars belief that Eva, who is married to a UK citizen, pays taxes in the UK and has five years guaranteed employment as a visiting fellow, has been issued with a letter threatening her removal and possible detention.

“I am fighting this decision on her behalf and on behalf of all those living in the UK whose lives are being turned upside down by the Government callously playing hard ball over Brexit.”

Simon Gaskell, President and Principal of Queen Mary University of London, where Dr Holberg works, said the erroneous letter to their member of staff was "deeply concerning", adding that almost a third of their academic staff come from overseas, and that their loss would do "irreperable damage" to the institution's stature.

“Whilst it is clearly reassuring that the appalling position in which Dr Eva Holmberg was placed has now been resolved, we should be deeply concerned that such mistakes can be made – and, perhaps worse, that we live in times when they do not particularly surprise us," Mr Gaskell said.

"At Queen Mary University London, approximately 30 per cent of academic staff come from overseas; their loss would do irreparable damage to the success and international stature of the university.

"While I have no doubt that these colleagues understand how much their university values them, it is essential that the UK government makes clear that it also understands the huge contribution that they make.”

A Home Office spokesperson admitted that around 100 people had wrongly recieved the letter, adding: “A limited number of letters were issued in error and we have been urgently looking into why this happened. We are contacting everyone who received this letter to clarify that they can disregard it.

“We are absolutely clear that the rights of EU nationals living in the UK remain unchanged."