Keeping people temporary makes it harder to find work and more difficult to challenge exploitation if in work. Further limiting support for asylum seekers will increase destitution & remove options creating huge risks of exploitation. This policy making is cruel and will do much harm

Shabana Mahmood confirmed in the House of Commons yesterday that the new safe and legal routes in the asylum policy statement would be only "in the low hundreds". This is at the same time that refugee family reunion is paused, and will be significantly restricted www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Net migration was 345,000 in 2024, the Office for National Statistics now estimates - 20% lower than its first estimate of 431,000: www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopula.... The update includes much higher emigration of British citizens than previously thought.

Has anyone taken a look at the claimed link between introduction of Denmark's much-vaunted asylum policies and the reduction in asylum claims and compared to EU trends? It's a bit of a distraction, really, though, given the major differences between Denmark and UK as a destination.

If you haven't already read it, may I suggest this explainer on the appeals backlog: freemovement.org.uk/briefing-the...

I'm a bit of a broken record on this one, but there's a whole section in the asylum paper about replacing the appeals system. Yet the Government can't even publish data on how many appeals they're currently losing/withdrawing. Those stats haven't been published since March 2023.

Reading through the asylum policy document, the post-refugee status process is going to be a dream for anyone who enjoys needlessly complex & bureaucratic processes. First, the Home Office will review whether people still need protection every 2.5 years. That's tens of thousands of people each year.

The basic problem with the temporary refugee status policy - especially one lasting up to 20 years - is it leads to very few removals (based on Denmark's experience) but does significantly worsen integration.

The bit on appeals reform contains almost no detail, even now. New appeals body, "fully independent", but not the judiciary by the sounds of things, so I don't know how that's supposed to work. Accelerated appeals for poor cases (self fulfilling prophecy, that) and a single appeal.

There are three Urgent Questions in the Commons this afternoon (after Home Office questions). So the Home Secretary's statement is unlikely to come before 5.30pm now.

In other news, they were playing Christmas songs at my daughter's swimming lesson this morning. That seems way to early, even for me.

Adding more pressure on local authorities as well. Not quite sure where they are going with this. Very few ppl will have a right to work under 3c leave and they aren't extending it as far as I can tell.

The Government inherited an asylum system in meltdown, and had managed to at least get cases being processed again while ending the madness of the Rwanda plan. But the policies being announced today undermine all of that, making it harder for refugees to integrate and contribute to their communities

Asked if Keir Starmer believes British people want to "see refugee children pulled out of school and deported after 10 years in this country”, his spokesman says that “what the British public wants and what this government was elected on a mandate to deliver was to secure our borders"

Plans to leave refugees in a state of perpetual uncertainty about where and if they can rebuild their lives are not just performative cruelty, they are counterproductive to integration and the economy. It doesn’t have to be like this - 1/2

The Sun has been told Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will on Monday propose confiscating jewellery, watches, necklaces from asylum seekers to meet asylum costs This reflects the most controversial aspect of the Danish scheme - the Jewellery Law. The toughest Labour MPs thought this was OTT

From the Times, about our Home Secretary: "Mahmood is said to have been inspired by Trump’s homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, who has overseen the president’s mass deportation policy." www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

The Prime Minister said in September that we are at a fork in the road. These asylum proposals suggest we have taken the wrong turning. The idea that recognised refugees need to be deported is wrong. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

If you want more significant numbers of asylum seekers to work and find their own housing, rather than rely on statutory asylum provision, then you presumably need to…allow them to work? What am I missing

Where do refugees to the UK come from? (House of Commons library)

It will also mean people's refugee status will be reviewed every 2 and half years. If this policy was in place now, that would mean the Home Office having at least another 67k decisions to process over the next year (the number of initial decision grants made between April 2023 and March 2024)

Can anyone who thinks the new settlement rules could reduce a "pull fsctor" explain why the 2022 Nationality And Borders Act (only temporary protection if come without permission) and 2023 Illegal Migration Act (can't claim asylum at all if unauthorised) didn't stop the boats/reduce the flow

In an interview with The Times, the Home Secretary has said that refugees who arrived irregularly in the UK will have to wait 20 years before the can qualify for settlement, with their refugee status reviewed every 30 months. 20 years. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Is there a Home Secretary who, since 2005, *hasn’t* “introduced” safe return reviews for refugees? Other than Grant Shapps, who only had a few hours. Re-announcing an old, existing and totally pointless policy is very, very tired.

"The era of permanent protection is over" Is this Labour government really saying it was wrong in principle to let these refugees of the last 75 years to stay, settle and become British - and they believe that should NEVER happen again in principle or practice? www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiuR...

It is certainly demonstrably untrue that Britain is "the destination of choice" for asylum seekers. The Home Office data proves that it is not. www.gov.uk/government/s...

Assuming a right of appeal comes with these decisions, an already strained tribunal would likely face a significant increase in caseload. I have cases 18+ months in the tribunal system at the moment.

This won’t stop people seeking protection in the UK. It will make it harder for refugees to rebuild their lives, feel secure and contribute to their communities. It will create a load more work for the Home Office, reviewing claims every three years. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Leaving those who flee persecution or their kids in limbo- either when making a claim or when they try to rebuild lives- is not just cruel. It’s counterproductive to integration & costly to all. Asylum reform needs to be both effective & ethical. And those of us not frightened to fight for it.

People who have been persecuted, tortured or seen family members killed in brutal wars are not "asylum shopping." As our CEO told @thetimes.com, refugees don’t compare asylum systems before running for their lives. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Also curious to know if anyone has a source for this. I'm seeing it in virtually every news item on Denmark and asylum.

Lots of claims in the press over the last few days that Denmark returns 95% of people refused asylum- anyone found a source for that which isn’t a UK media story? The Danish Returns Agency stats don’t seem to have been updated since March 2023 eng.hjemst.dk/figures-and-...

Labour government will propose changes to the asylum system, on grounds it is 'excessively generous'. This government needs to get control in the Channel, clear hotels + secure public confidence. V little chance that these changes will deliver control or confidence news.sky.com/story/home-s...

The upcoming changes to the asylum system, which are all about putting refugees off from coming to the UK. are being sold as “the most radical” since the Second World War.”Presumably that’s referring to the signing of the Refugee Convention and recognising the importance of the rights of refugees….

The Home Office have published the 2024 Asylum Support Rates Review - 5 months after the changes came into effect assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6915e0...

Alongside the media briefings ahead of the asylum policy announcement that seems to be coming next week, the Home Office have again published ad hoc returns stats - www.gov.uk/government/p.... Amazing how they can do that but have been unable to publish asylum appeal stats for over two years.

The government may have been successful in this case, but they still have a problem on their hands. Hotels are not an appropriate long-term solution for housing people seeking asylum. Nor is warehousing people in military barracks or other large sites. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Here's the judgment from the full hearing on the use of the Bell Hotel as asylum accommodation. Epping Forest unsuccessful in their attempt to prevent the hotel's continued use to accommodate people seeking asylum www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/u...

Large accommodation sites are not a viable or humane solution, as we told The Times. These plans are extremely costly and logistically complex. They will further isolate people away from communities and fail to address the real issues facing the asylum system. www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

The Home Office could do their bit by making the move-on period for newly recognised refugees 56 days. Since the 56 day pilot was “paused”, the return to 28 days is simply not long enough for people to find new accommodation.

Good question from @libdemdaisy.bsky.social on Syrians waiting for a settlement decision. They were paused last Dec, as were asylum claims. Asylum claims are being processed now but not those for ILR - the Home Office can't say how many are impacted questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-ques...

Baroness Lister is introducing her amendment on the move-on period now. Unlikely to be pushed to a vote, but hopefully will get some update from the Minister on what the Government's plans and when they'll published the evaluation of the 56 day pilot www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/...

Report stage of the Border Security Bill continues in the Lords today. Amendments likely to be debated include one from Baroness Lister extending the move-on period for refugees to 56 days and @alfdubs.bsky.social's amendment on refugee family reunion for children bills.parliament.uk/publications...

The Government just lost a vote on the Border Security Bill. It was a conservative amendment requiring the collection of data on overseas students who have had their visas revoked because of a criminal conviction. The Lib Dems abstained so it passed 161 to 144

Report stage of the Border Security Bill continues in the Lords today. Amendments likely to be debated include one from Baroness Lister extending the move-on period for refugees to 56 days and @alfdubs.bsky.social's amendment on refugee family reunion for children bills.parliament.uk/publications...

Two months after the Government paused refugee family reunion, Lord Kerr has written for @politicshome.bsky.social about an amendment led by @alfdubs.bsky.social seeking to ensure that refugee children can continue to be reunited with family members in the UK www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...

💡New! How to design an independent asylum appeal body blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandp...

3 things Starmer could do instead of camps in old barracks that would actually WORK👇 1. Create safe, regulated routes to apply for asylum in the UK 2. Let asylum seekers WORK & support themselves 3. Fast track status for people from obviously unsafe countries metro.co.uk/2025/10/29/k...

The list of governmental responsibilities still hasn't been updated since the reshuffle www.gov.uk/government/p...

"Legal sources said more migrants were attempting to cross the Channel in small boats because they were being left homeless by the French authorities" www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...