‘HEARTACHE’ – a Bilton toddler and his mum are facing another Christmas without his dad, due to a UK law which states he cannot live in the country because she doesn’t earn enough money.
Laura Clarke had to leave her fiance Biniyam Tesfaye thousands of miles away in Ethiopia when she was pregnant with their son Elijah due to the Minimum Income Requirement (MIR) – which states British citizens cannot live in the UK with a partner from outside the EU if they earn less than £18,600 a year.
The 29-year-old, a communications officer for Warwickshire-based charity Equality and Inclusion Partnership, was working in Ethiopia in 2015 when she met and fell in love with Biniyam.
Having spent just six months with Biniyam over the last two-and-a-half years, Laura spent last Saturday (December 15) singing carols in London’s Trafalgar Square to raise awareness of the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants’ (JCWI) Families Together campaign.
She told The Observer that Elijah, two, had never spent Christmas with his dad.
She said: “We have missed out on irreversible time. Biniyam has missed Elijah’s birth, first words, first walk, two birthdays and now three Christmases.
“We speak on the phone when we can – but a 20 minute call is £10 and we cannot video call because of limited internet reception.
“That’s not appropriate for Elijah because he can’t see him. He sees his photo everyday and says ‘Daddy’, but he has never got to speak to him or interact with him since a six-month visit ended in October 2017.”
Laura only found out about the MIR in 2016 when already pregnant and planning to return to the UK with teacher Biniyam.
She said: “I felt shocked. I could not believe a country could do that to its own citizens. I wish they had made the rules clearer.”
Already below the MIR earnings threshold, the couple have had to spend all their savings on over £3,000 of solicitor and government fees – meaning they cannot afford to travel and meet up.
She said: “We have applied for a settlement visa under exceptional circumstances combining our household income, which includes mine, my mother’s and father’s income. Once married it will be another £1,500 to pay in government fees.
“If we are denied it will be another few thousand to go to court. Not only that but it will cause so much heartache.”
She joined the festive protest to meet with other affected families and bring about a change in the law.
“I want the public to know about the social implications of the rules, and how a British child is without a father.
“We need to recognise the child’s needs.”
More than 15,000 British children grow up without one of their parents due to the MIR, which JCWI is campaigning to abolish. Visit www.jcwi.org.uk for more information.
