How journalists can end up dictating Home Office policy

When you write the stories of people wronged by governmental mistakes, you end up setting off a sometimes unexpected chain of events

Covering social affairs means reporting on all manner of injustice and human suffering – that much is obvious. But while a journalist’s job is usually limited to informing the public and raising awareness, my work increasingly appears to be dictating government decisions that can transform people’s lives.

Just last week, I wrote a story about a mother who was blocked from coming to the UK to see her seriously ill daughter because the Home Office was “not satisfied” her intentions were genuine. Within 12 hours of publication, the department reversed the decision and granted her a visa.

Days before this, our team reported how a student from Amsterdam University had been blocked from entering the UK for an academic conference because immigration officials were “not satisfied” she would leave at the end of her stay. Again, within hours of the story going live, the Home Office performed a U-turn and granted her entry.