Fury Rises Over Labour's 'Cruel' New Asylum Plan: 'A Brutal Step Backwards'

Home secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced a new crackdown on the asylum systemShabana Mahmood’s new plans to tough up the British asylum system have been criticised for being “cruel” – and for appealing to the “far right”. The home secretary wants to unveil the “most sweeping set of reforms in modern times”, cutting the period people hold refugee status from five years to two-and-a-half years.She also wants to make refugees wait 20 years – rather than the current five years – to claim indefinite right to remain in the UK, although Mahmood has hinted that if asylum seekers use “safe and legal routes”, find work and contribute to society, they might be able to able for settled status earlier.Her full plan is set to be unveiled on Monday, but the home secretary did tell broadcasters on Sunday that Britain must address the “pull factors” which drive migrants to make dangerous boat crossings across the Channel.She has drawn inspiration from Denmark’s tough system in a bid to make Britain less attractive and reduce the number of refugees trying to reach the UK via illegal means.It comes amid rising criticism towards the British asylum system as Labour has struggled to stop the flow of small boat crossings since getting into office last July – and anti-immigration rivals like Reform UK have been soaring in the polls.Mahmood has denied any accusations that these new policies are racist.“I can see that illegal migration is causing division across our country,” she told Sky News. “People are angry about something that is real.”'Our illegal migration system is broken.'@ShabanaMahmood denies that the govt’s efforts to tackle illegal migration are 'racist'.The home sec adds: 'I can see that illegal migration is causing division across our country... People are angry about something that is real.' pic.twitter.com/wm34z7WPyA— Sky News (@SkyNews) November 16, 2025However, Enver Solomon from the Refugee Council has warned that it is not a good idea for Mahmood to copy Denmark.He told Sky News: “Denmark is a very different country. It’s a much smaller country. “It wasn’t a big colonial power. It doesn’t have connections around the globe because of its history in the way that the UK does to Iran, to Afghanistan, to Sudan, to the Middle East... the other parts of the world. “It doesn’t have the same kind of diaspora communities that we have in this country. And obviously its language is not English. It’s not the lingua franca of the globe. So it’s difficult to make comparisons to them.”Solomon added: “Home Office research has shown that people come here not because it’s soft, but because they can speak English or because of connections to communities here. “We need to address these factors and come up with solutions which are genuinely going to stem the flow of people having to take very dangerous journeys and put their lives at risk.”Similarly, Green Party co-deputy leader Mothin Ali said: “These proposed changes are a brutal step backwards, not just politically, but morally.“It is noteworthy that those celebrating this move today weren’t Labour backbenchers, but Tommy Robinson.”Robinson, also known as Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is a former BNP member and known leader of the far-right.Replying to a post about Mahmood’s plans to make asylum temporary in the UK, Robinson wrote on X: “The Overton window has been obliterated, well done patriots!”Ali continued: “Instead of punishing desperate people fleeing danger, the government should be creating safe routes and treating asylum seekers with dignity.“Britain, at its heart, is a country of compassion that has always offered a welcome to those fleeing the most unimaginable situations. “Instead, we now have a Labour government scapegoating the most vulnerable. The Greens reject using refugee policy as a political tool. Toughening rights doesn’t make us safer; it makes us cruel.”Ali called on the government “to abandon these punitive measures dismantle the hostile environment”.His message was echoed by Green leader Zack Polanski on X.The Labour Government reeling off the same far-right talking points on immigration. And look who is celebrating. The far right. There is a political alternative that won’t ever scapegoat those fleeing war, persecution and torturehttps://t.co/zh8KY9rsqgpic.twitter.com/RiaUAFvpFH— Zack Polanski (@ZackPolanski) November 16, 2025Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said while it’s right to have asylum measures to “tackle the chaos”, the 20-year wait for asylum seekers to apply for settled status permanently poses a “danger” as it “could prevent refugees contributing to our society”.The party’s home affairs spokesperson Max Wilkinson said “some of the rhetoric” around asylum seekers has made him “a little bit uncomfortable”.But, he added: “I think it’s really important that when we’re talking about this, we take a moderate tone of voice, and we recognise that the people that we’re talking about - the refugees, the asylum seekers and immigrants in general – are human beings as well.”The Conservatives would vote for Mahmood’s migration proposals providing they are “sensible”, according to shadow home secretary Chris Philp – but he also suggested they were not “radical” enough right now.He reiterated the party’s calls for the UK to come out of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) so we “can deport every single illegal arrival within a week”.Meanwhile, Reform UK’s head of policy Zia Yusuf suggested Labour will not be able to implement these policies because of resistance from their own backbenchers.He wrote on social media: “Mahmood is desperately trying to chase Reform, but it won’t work.“The reality is she will be blocked by her own backbench MPs (who are already calling her racist) and unwillingness to leave the ECHR.“They will win no Reform voters back, and hemorrhage support to the Greens.”Related...Labour's 'Shocking' Decision To Move Asylum Seekers Into Military Barracks Is Already Causing TroubleLabour's New Plan For Asylum Accommodation Is Exactly Like The One They Spurned Just Months AgoKeir Starmer's Asylum Seeker Woes Just Keep Getting Worse

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