Britain accused of diluting 'proud tradition' of protecting political refugees

Despite new law, UK will never return people 'to be tortured in their own countries', Prime Minister's spokesman tells The National

Britain's Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood outlines the new reforms to seeking asylum, in the UK Parliament. AFP

The UK government has confirmed to The National it will continue its “proud tradition” of welcoming political asylum seekers despite the introduction of strict new migration laws.

Refugees will now have to live in the UK for 20 years before they can settle permanently, after a sweeping overhaul of the asylum system announced by the Home Office on Monday.

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, spearheaded by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, is part of the most significant shake-up of Britain’s approach to asylum seekers in modern times.

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The British government is determined to assert its authority by clamping down on illegal migrants and it is feared those seeking political persecution will be subject to the tough new rules.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has led the shake-up of Britain’s approach to asylum seekers. EPA

Asked by The National whether the UK would continue to welcome those fleeing conflict and oppression, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s official spokesman said the government would “never seek to return anyone to be tortured in their own country”.

“We're proud of being an open and tolerant country, and those are values that this Prime Minister will always defend, but the public rightly holds conditions to this generosity,” the spokesman added. “These plans are about reducing the pressures caused by uncontrolled immigration, keeping Britain true to its proud tradition of offering refuge to those fleeing danger.”

He insisted the latest policy was to make Britain “less attractive for illegal migrants” but said there would be safe and legal routes “for genuine refugees”. A record number of migrants is expected to cross the English Channel by small boat this year, with 37,000 having made the trip by the end of October.

The Prime Minister's spokesman added: “It will allow us to continue giving sanctuary to those fleeing danger and ensure those who contribute to the economy can gain settlement quicker".

British people do not “want to close the doors” on asylum seekers, the Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said as she unveiled the plan. The Government would open new, capped, safe and legal routes into the country “as order and control is restored”. These would include community sponsorship, skilled workers and talented students.

The schemes would start with hundreds allowed to come to the UK but then grow.

Since the Second World War, Britain has become home to tens of thousands of refugees fleeing war, from displaced Poles, Uganda Asians, Vietnamese boat people and more recently from Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.

Now, at a time when so many are fleeing conflict and repression, “Britain must remain a beacon of compassion and hope”, independent Muslim MP Ayoub Khan told The National.

“For generations, people have risked everything to reach our shores because they believed in the values that define this country: fairness, humanity and the promise of safety,” said the son of migrants from Kashmir.

But he accused his neighbouring Birmingham MP, Ms Mahmood, of introducing reforms that “turn away from the long-standing British tradition of offering sanctuary to the most vulnerable”, describing such a move as “profoundly unjust”.

“Britain has always stood tallest when it has stood with empathy,” Mr Khan added. “I urge the government, and particularly the Home Secretary, to return to the compassionate, principled approach to asylum.

“Our moral leadership in the world is measured not by how we treat the powerful, but by how we treat those who are seeking our protection.”

A Border Force checkpoint at London Gatwick Airport, as new UK immigration rules come into place. Getty Images

Dashty Jamal, general secretary of the International Federation of Iraqi Refugees, said the policy went against UK traditions and would damage its standing in the world.

“It was the UK that signed the Refugee Convention and created the European Convention on Human Rights, and that was a victory for progress,” he told The National. “We believe these policies are damaging to human rights. Such policies will damage the name of the UK.”

Alison Pickup, chief executive of refugee charity the Helen Bamber Foundation, told The National: “Plans to continually reassess the status of refugees place a profound strain on the mental health and stability of people already recognised as needing protection, while also damaging the UK’s standing as a country committed to safeguarding those escaping war, conflict, torture, trafficking and other extreme forms of human cruelty."

No 10 Downing Street also highlighted that while asylum-seeker claims were falling in Europe, they were rising in Britain, with 400,000 claiming asylum in the past four years, and 100,000 housed and supported by the taxpayer.

That was why the government had announced the policy to “make it less attractive for illegal migrants to come to Britain” and to “make it easier to remove illegal migrants from British soil”, Mr Starmer’s spokesman said.

The government has also stressed that when countries from which refugees have fled are safe to return to, then those people should be encouraged to do so.

The UK has been helping Syrians to return home following the re-establishment of diplomatic relations but a government paper said this could become compulsory.

"We are now exploring resuming enforced returns to countries where we have not routinely carried out such removals in recent years, including to Syria," said the paper.

The policy also sets out how those escaping persecution can come to the UK through "safe and legal routes", which have already been provided for those fleeing war in Syria, Ukraine and Afghanistan, as well as to residents of Hong Kong.

This would entail using the "refugee sponsorship" model, whereby communities and NGOs would work with the government to settle refugees, whose numbers would be tightly controlled.

The intention is to provide those arriving through this process with a 10-year path to permanent settlement, though this will be subject to wider consultation, the government said.