Key facts
- A health service in France documented injuries in 90 asylum seekers returned from the UK between January and June 2026.
- Injuries included bruising, fractures, and lacerations consistent with physical violence.
- The asylum seekers were returned under the "one in, one out" scheme, which ends October 1.
- The scheme involves returning one asylum seeker to France for each one brought to the UK.
- The health service noted signs of prolonged detention in degrading conditions.
- One returnee required hospital emergency care after reporting physical violence in England.
A health service supporting asylum seekers returned to France from the UK has documented multiple injuries, including bruising and fractures, among those subjected to the "one in, one out" scheme. Samusocial de Paris (SSP), commissioned to provide healthcare for returnees in Paris for eight days after deportation, has recorded cases of 90 individuals between January 22 and June 7, 2026. These returnees, primarily young men fleeing conflict zones, reported signs consistent with recent physical and psychological violence, as well as consequences of prolonged detention in degrading conditions.
The "one in, one out" pilot scheme, known in France as "one for one," involves the UK Home Office removing one asylum seeker to France for each asylum seeker brought to the UK. The scheme is slated to end on October 1. Approximately 1,400 people have been forcibly removed to France since the scheme's inception in August 2025.
The evidence compiled by SSP, based on clinical consultations and hospital reports, has been submitted to a French Assembly inquiry into the Le Touquet agreements. The report highlights that the physical and psychological conditions documented are explicitly linked to the implementation of the Franco-British agreement, with the frequency and recurrence of reported incidents appearing particularly worrying.
One A&E medical report described a returnee in significant suffering and shock, with injuries consistent with restraint, such as handcuff lacerations, and abdominal pain from blows. The report includes 13 case studies detailing injuries that worsened due to a lack of medical treatment in UK detention, and concerns about mental health conditions like PTSD. One individual required emergency psychiatric treatment due to disorientation, body tics, incoherent speech, and being at risk of suicide.
SSP has recommended establishing a mechanism to collect and forward allegations of mistreatment by British authorities to the UK, and reporting such issues to the French prosecutor. Nihal Osman, a programme coordinator for Médecins Sans Frontières, stated that the agreement is a "machine for psychological destruction" and that the physical injuries sustained in UK detention must be viewed alongside serious psychological deterioration.