Most significant changes to asylum system in modern times to be announced tomorrow
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has today pledged the most sweeping reforms of the asylum system in decades, outlining tough new measures aimed at reducing asylum claims and increasing the number of removals. A full statement will be made tomorrow.
Image credit: WikipediaIn a video address on social media, the Home Secretary said: "On Monday, I will announce the most significant changes to our asylum system in modern times. Today, I want to tell you why. Across Europe, asylum claims are falling but in Britain, they are rising. In the last 4 years, 400,000 people claimed asylum here. Over 100,000 are housed and supported at taxpayers expense. Putting huge pressure on local communities. The previous government had years to tackle this problem. Instead, they wasted time and 700 million pounds on their Rwanda scheme, removing a sum total of four volunteers.
"This government has been rebuilding. We have record levels of immigration raids and arrests. We have prevented over 20,000 illegal channel crossings and we have now returned nearly 50,000 illegal migrants. These were vital steps but we must now go further. We need to reduce the numbers coming here illegally. We need to remove more people who have no right to be here. We will always be a country that gives sanctuary to those fleeing danger but we must restore order and control."
According to media reports, the reforms will mean:
- Refugees will no longer receive automatic indefinite leave to remain after five years; their status will now be temporary, initially granted for 2.5 years and reviewed every 30 months, with those from countries that have been deemed safe required to return home.
- People arriving illegally in the UK, including via small boats or overstaying visas, will face a 20-year wait before they can apply for permanent settlement, while legal arrivals under new refugee routes will have a 10-year pathway to settlement.
- Housing and financial support for asylum seekers will become discretionary, with assistance withdrawn from those who can work or support themselves and from anyone who breaks the law.
- Asylum seekers with the right to work will be expected to work and contribute, with skilled refugees able to shorten the 20-year settlement timeline through employment or study.
Mahmood told the BBC that what she deemed "illegal migration" was an issue that is dividing the country and the system was "out of control". She said the reforms would "restore order and control".
The Home Secretary stated: "What the new reforms will do is change that generations-old assumption that sanctuary provided to refugees can very quickly lead to permanent settlement and all of the rights that go alongside that. We will change that to a more temporary process."
Accompanying the asylum reforms, the Government will introduce new capped safe and legal routes for refugees, though the Home Secretary said they would be "modest" to begin with.