“They will not stop coming here until the world knows that if you enter Britain illegally you will be detained and swiftly removed back to your country, if it is safe, or a safe third country such as Rwanda…And that is precisely what this bill will do. That is how we will stop the boats.”
— Suella Braverman, UK Home Secretary
UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman recently announced a new Illegal Migration Bill that will mean migrants arriving in the UK illegally on small boats will be “removed swiftly”, agencies reported.
The Indian-origin Home Secretary, whose father is of Goan heritage and mother of Tamil heritage, referenced her own migrant roots during her statement in the House of Commons to lay out details of the new “robust approach” against illegal migration. “They will not stop coming here until the world knows that if you enter Britain illegally you will be detained and swiftly removed back to your country, if it is safe, or a safe third country such as Rwanda,” Braverman said. “And that is precisely what this bill will do. That is how we will stop the boats,” she said.
The Home Secretary said the new bill will mean last-minute judicial reviews “conducted late at night with no chance to make our case or even appeal decisions” are no longer allowed.
Besides a crackdown on unsafe boats crossing over from the French sea border, Suella Braverman also revealed plans for an annual Parliament-set cap on migrants granted asylum in the UK through safe routes
“Now, the United Kingdom must always support the world’s most vulnerable. Since 2015, we have given sanctuary to nearly half a million people. These include 150,000 people from Hong Kong, 160,000 people from Ukraine, 25,000 Afghans fleeing the Taliban.”
She also said: “Indeed, my own parents decades ago found security and opportunity in this country, something for which my family is eternally grateful.”
Under the new law, it will be her duty as Home Secretary “to remove’ those entering the UK via illegal routes. This will take legal precedence over someone’s right to claim asylum – although there will be exemptions for under-18s, those with serious medical conditions, and some “at real risk of serious and irreversible harm”.
Besides a crackdown on unsafe boats crossing over from the French sea border, Suella Braverman also revealed plans for an annual Parliament-set cap on migrants granted asylum in the UK through safe routes.
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