Shabana Mahmood announced a series of changes to the rules governing both regular and irregular migration on Thursday as the government tries to restore control over what it says is a broken system.
Some of the changes have already been put in place, some are being consulted on and some may never come to pass. But what exactly is the government planning?
Temporary refugee status
Under the old system, refugees were granted five years’ leave to remain and after that could apply for indefinite leave to remain.
Under the new rules, however, those granted refugee protection will have this reviewed every 30 months. If their country is no longer deemed to be dangerous the government can now send them back.
In practice many are likely to continue qualifying as refugees given the intractable nature of conflicts in countries such as Sudan and Eritrea along with the current and historical conflicts across the Middle East.
Mahmood signed this into law on Thursday without the need for a Commons vote, and it will come into force on Monday.
Applying the visa brake
Mahmood has temporarily halted new study visas for students from four countries: Cameroon, Sudan, Myanmar and Afghanistan, as well as skilled worker visas from Afghanistan only.
Home Office officials say they took the action for two reasons: the high numbers of arrivals on those visas who went on to claim asylum, and the refusal of those countries to take back people whose claims had been refused.
Critics point out that there is conflict, war or human rights abuses in all four of the countries, and that the home secretary has just shut down a set of “safe and legal” routes for people affected by any of those issues.
Pilot payments
Under a new scheme, 150 families of people whose asylum claims have been refused and who are living in hotels will be offered up to £40,000 to return voluntarily to their countries.
The families have already been identified and contacted, and now have seven days to decide whether or not to take up the offer. If they decline they will be forcibly removed.
Mahmood said on Thursday that force may be used against both children and adults if they resist removal, but officials are now consulting on how exactly that can be applied. Families will not be forcibly returned to war zones.
Removing asylum support
The government is changing the law so it no longer has a legal duty to support asylum seekers financially, and will stop payments to anyone who is working illegally, has been convicted of a crime or who has independent financial means.
Provisions have existed for many years allowing asylum seekers the right to work if their initial asylum claim has not been determined after 12 months due to no fault of their own, though Mahmood is now expanding the number of jobs they can apply for.
In practice, however, individual asylum seekers will still have to receive permission to work from the Home Office, which can be a complex process. Many also do not have the skills and qualifications for jobs for which they should theoretically be eligible.
Making it harder to get settled status
Mahmood is doubling the length of time required before many people can gain settlement rights from five years to 10 years.
Refugees and those who have accessed benefits after being granted limited leave to remain may have to wait 20 years.
The government is consulting on these changes and deciding how best to implement them. It may need a mix of primary and secondary legislation – potentially giving Labour MPs the opportunity to knock them down.
