Home secretary to unveil radical asylum reforms

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is expected to announce sweeping reforms of the UK's asylum system next week.

The changes will be based on Denmark and other European countries which have made it harder to claim asylum and easier to remove people.

Government sources said the numbers coming are drawn here by what they said was "excessive generosity and the ease of remaining".

The announcents come as new figures show nearly 50,000 illegal migrants have been removed or deported from the UK since Labour entered power in July 2024 - which it said was a 23% increase compared to the previous 16-months.

Next week Mahmood will tell MPs her plan means "less in, more out", through what the Home Office promiesd will be the biggest reforms "to tackle illegal migration in modern times".

The Home Office believes the UK has become the destination for "asylum shoppers" - those who shop around for different countries to claim refuge.

It is understood many of the changes will be closely modelled on the policies of Denmark's centre-left Social Democrats, who havepresided over one of the toughest asylum and immigration systems in Europe.

The party's reforms introduced in 2016 led to a 40-year low in asylum claims.

In Denmark refugees are given temporary residence permits, typically of two years, and in effect have to reapply for asylum when they expire.

Even for those who are allowed to extend multiple times, the route to citizenship has grown longer and harder.

Four years ago the Danish government planned to return around 200 refugees to Syria while the civil war raged because it said some parts of Damascus were safe.

The home secretary had sent senior officials to Denmark to see what lessons can be learned from their system.

The Danish changes have been achieved while remaining inside the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

Labour have promised to look again at how international laws including the ECHR were interpreted by UK courts - to stop unsuccessful asylum seekers blocking their deportation on the grounds they could be sent to worse prisons or healthcare systems.

Both Reform UK and the Conservatives argue that it would be more effective to leave the Convention entirely.

The Conservatives arguethe government cannot stop small boats carrying illegal migrants across the channel unless Rwanda-style deterrent scheme is restored.

Mahmood is expected to make an address to Parliament on the plans on Monday.

Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to read top political analysis, gain insight from across the UK and stay up to speed with the big moments. It'll be delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.