X-ray pilot for child asylum-seekers sparks outrage

Date: 2nd April 2012
Category: Refugee , migrant and asylum-seeking children

The United Kingdom's four children's commissioners have slammed a Home Office pilot scheme to use dental X-rays to determine the age of asylum-seeking children.

Although the scheme is not compulsory, the children's commissioners warn that it "places the child at risk because they may be unable to give informed consent and will be at increased, unnecessary exposure to medical radiation."

Similar concerns have recently been raised in Australia, Spain, and Europe, where advocates have highlighted the unreliability in current age assessment procedures.

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