Many Western countries are making their immigration rules stricter. They are closing borders and sharing reports on how much immigration costs. In Denmark, the government says that immigration from outside Europe is expensive for the country. Sweden is working to deport more people, and in Germany, the next leader, Friedrich Merz, has promised to make the borders stronger.
Britain is doing the opposite. The Labour government has removed the Rwanda plan and is changing Conservative laws that were meant to send illegal immigrants back to their home country or another safe country. A new immigration law, introduced last Thursday, will make it easier for illegal immigrants to stay in Britain forever. It sends a message that Britain’s welfare system is open to the world.
The new law cancels Conservative rules that:
- Stopped illegal immigrants from making asylum claims.
- Forced the government to remove illegal immigrants from the country.
- Prevented illegal immigrants from getting British citizenship.
- Allowed officials to treat asylum seekers as adults if they refused age checks.
- Limited courts from blocking immigration detention.
- Declared Rwanda as a safe place to send illegal immigrants.
These changes will make it harder for the UK to control its borders and deport illegal immigrants. Some parts of the law do not seem serious. For example, the government will officially recognize the Border Security Command, but most of its agencies already report to the Home Secretary. The law also says the Commander must write a “priority document,” but this will not have a real impact.
Other parts of the law seem unrealistic. There are new rules against supplying equipment for Channel crossings, even outside the UK. However, since Britain already struggles to stop immigration crimes inside the country, it seems unlikely that it can track and arrest criminals in other countries. Even if these criminals are jailed, other government policies will make it harder to deport them after their sentences.
Even the new rules that seem strict have big gaps. One rule punishes people who refuse help from French boats while crossing the sea, but parents with children on these boats will not be charged. This will encourage more migrants and criminal gangs to put children on boats, making the situation worse.
As usual, human rights laws influence Labour’s decisions. Many of the changes, like canceling the Rwanda plan, are based on human rights concerns. These laws put the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people to live safely.
Labour’s plan for illegal immigrants crossing the Channel is clear. They will quickly process asylum claims, approve most of them, and then move the immigrants into welfare and council housing. This helps ministers avoid criticism over the growing cost of housing illegal immigrants in hotels. However, once asylum is granted, the government does not track their costs through the welfare system, and they refuse to share this data.
Last July, when the government stopped deporting asylum seekers who entered illegally, they estimated that 44,000 more people could be given asylum. If all of them enter the benefits system, taxpayers could pay nearly £18 billion over their lifetimes.
The Home Office has been criticized for not being clear about the costs of its policies. The UK Statistics Authority even warned them to be more transparent. Even though ministers refuse to share full details, studies from other countries show the reality.
In Denmark, the government found that in 2018, immigrants from the Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan, and Turkey made up 55% of non-Western migrants but were responsible for 77% of the costs. Each migrant cost about £9,500 per year.
In the Netherlands, a study found that an asylum seeker costs about £400,000 over their lifetime. In the UK, the Office for Budget Responsibility says a low-wage migrant arriving at 25 will cost taxpayers £465,000 by the time they reach 81.
The Conservative Party was lucky to survive politically after allowing immigration to rise after Brexit. But this new law is a big mistake that must be challenged. There is still a chance to fix the damage and reduce immigration numbers.
Labour will likely reject efforts to make immigrants wait longer for permanent residency, limit human rights laws, and deport those who do not contribute to society. However, these would be important steps toward a better immigration policy in the future.
