The Netherlands has been deporting failed asylum seekers from Guinea on fake travel documents, produced by a ministry which no longer exists, according researchers for television programme Zembla.

The immigration service cut a deal with Guinea several years ago to speed up the repatriation of would-be refugees.

Zembla spoke to officials in the African country itself and found the home affairs ministry which is providing the papers was dissolved in 2010.

‘The people who reached this deal in the Netherlands were not morally qualified to do so,’ Banama Sow, minister for Guineans living abroad, told Zembla.

Refused

The Dutch justice ministry said it was only aware of three cases in which deportees were refused entry because of doubts about their nationality.

Nos television reported in 2012 that the Netherlands was cooperating with Guinean police officials who had been included on a UN blacklist.

Although ministers at the time denied the Guineans were financed by the Netherlands, current affairs show Nieuwsuur revealed last year that the delegation had been paid €117,000.