The plans, impressed by Denmark’s method, purpose to slash irregular immigration and counter the UK’s far proper.
Published On 16 Nov 2025
The United Kingdom has introduced a drastic discount within the protections for asylum seekers and refugees underneath a brand new plan geared toward slashing irregular immigration and countering the far proper.
The measures, modelled on Denmark’s strict asylum system, have been introduced late on Saturday as Prime Minister Keir Starmer comes underneath stress from surging reputation for the anti-immigrant Reform UK celebration.
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“I’ll finish UK’s golden ticket for asylum seekers,” Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood declared in a press release, with the Home Office, as her ministry is thought, calling the brand new proposals the “largest overhaul of asylum coverage in trendy occasions”.
Mahmood is because of lay out the coverage in parliament on Monday.
Meanwhile, the top of the UK’s Refugee Council warned the federal government that the measures wouldn’t deter folks from making an attempt to achieve the nation and urged a rethink.
“They ought to make sure that refugees who work laborious and contribute to Britain can construct safe, settled lives and provides again to their communities,” Enver Solomon stated.
Currently, folks get refugee standing for 5 years, after which they will apply for indefinite depart to stay and finally, citizenship.
Mahmood’s ministry says it will lower the size of refugee standing to 30 months. That safety can be “frequently reviewed”, and refugees can be pressured to return to their residence nations as soon as they’re deemed protected, it added.
The ministry additionally stated it meant to make these refugees who have been granted asylum wait 20 years earlier than making use of to be allowed to stay within the UK long-term.
Asylum claims document excessive
Asylum claims in Britain are at a document excessive. Polls recommend immigration has overtaken the financial system as voters’ prime concern.
Some 109,343 folks claimed asylum within the UK within the yr ending March 2025, a 17 % rise on the earlier yr and 6 % above the 2002 peak of 103,081.
The Home Office stated the reforms would make it much less engaging for irregular migrants and refugees to return to the UK and make it simpler to take away these already within the nation.
A statutory authorized responsibility to supply help to asylum seekers, launched in a 2005 legislation, would even be revoked, the ministry stated. That means housing and weekly monetary allowances would not be assured for asylum seekers.
It can be “discretionary”, which means the federal government may deny help to any asylum seeker who may work or help themselves, or those that dedicated crimes.
Starmer, elected final yr, is underneath stress to cease migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats from France, one thing that additionally troubled his Conservative predecessors.
More than 39,000 folks, many fleeing battle, have arrived this yr following such harmful journeys – greater than for the entire of 2024 however decrease than the document set in 2022.
The crossings are serving to increase the recognition of Reform, led by firebrand Nigel Farage, which has led Labour by double-digit margins in opinion polls for many of this yr.
More than 100 British charities wrote to Mahmood, urging her to “finish the scapegoating of migrants and performative insurance policies that solely trigger hurt”, saying such steps are prompting racism and violence.
