Swedish TV documentary alleges that one of Sprakab's top Somali language analysts fabricated parts of his CV
The Independent reported yesterday that serious doubts have arisen over the qualifications of a Sprakab language analyst who specialises in the Somali dialect and has produced reports on thousands of cases involving Somali asylum seekers.
The Swedish-based Sprakab has been used by the Home Office for language analysis in asylum cases since 2000.
According to the Independent, allegations over the analyst's background and qualifications were made in a recent Swedish TV documentary called Mission: Investigate on SVT1.
The documentary alleged that the unnamed analyst was convicted of smuggling the drug khat in 1999, and he fabricated parts of his CV, claiming to have to have studied sociology for four years at Stockholm University when documents obtained from the university are said to show he did not even complete the first term. Further claims by the analyst that he studied statistics and other language courses are also alleged to be untrue.
The man is said to be one of Sprakab's top language analysts, and one of the analysts whose work was questioned and criticised in the Supreme Court case Secretary of State for Home Department (Appellant) v MN and KY (Respondents) (Scotland) [2014] UKSC 30 for offering "wholly inappropriate" opinions on asylum seekers instead of merely analysing the way they spoke.
Following the allegations, an investigation into Sprakab has been launched by the Swedish government's Migration Board.
Professor Peter Patrick from the University of Essex told the Independent that "wrong decisions may have been made in significant numbers" of asylum cases in the UK as a result of evidence provided by Sprakab analysts.
The Refugee Council's Lisa Doyle was quoted as saying: "It's alarming to think that the conclusions made by a single language analyst could possibly have led to an unknown number of vulnerable people being refused asylum."
The Independent says that the Home Office declined to comment on the allegations.
Labour's shadow minister for immigration, David Hanson, said he would be tabling parliamentary questions to ask the Home Secretary to look into the allegations.
In a separate article published today, the Independent reported that the Home Office had "quietly downgraded" its use of Sprakab in the wake of the Supreme Court case.
The Independent quoted a Home Office briefing document from 19 August as stating: "Until August 2014, the exclusive supplier was Sprakab. Commercial changes in early/mid 2014 introduced a second supplier, Verified AB. From August 2014, the Home Office will place reliance on the services of both companies. Verified AB will be the main supplier, with Sprakab providing language analysis services in a secondary capacity."