# ‘Windrush’ accusations over sharp rise in Turkish nationals facing removal from UK

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/windrush-accusations-over-sharp-rise-in-turkish-nationals-facing-removal-from-uk/
- Published: 2026-11-08T07:00:33+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-08T07:33:15+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/nov/08/turkish-nationals-uk-indefinite-leave-to-remain-home-office-windrush
- Topics: UK, World

## Key points

- Hundreds of Turkish residents have been refused permanent residency.
- Successful ECAA applications have fallen to a few hundred.
- David Lammy says the cases evoke the Windrush scandal.

## Summary

The Home Office has refused hundreds of Turkish nationals’ applications for indefinite leave to remain since the start of the year, while successful applications have fallen sharply. David Lammy and lawyers say the sudden change and apparent errors in refusals have devastated families and echo concerns from the Windrush scandal; the Home Office says the rules have not changed.

Applicants on the ECAA visa route, which allows Turkish nationals to establish businesses in the UK, have reportedly faced long delays and refusals based on requirements that do not exist. Cases include a woman undergoing cancer treatment abroad and a business owner whose window-cleaning firm was rejected for lacking a social media presence. Administrative reviews rose from 145 in 2025 to 395 between January and mid-August 2026.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.