The British government pushed its contentious migration bill forward in Parliament on Monday, despite a call from Europe’s top human rights organization for lawmakers to block the legislation.
The Illegal Migration Bill would bar asylum claims by anyone who reaches the UK by unauthorized means, and compel the government to detain and then deport them “to their home country or a safe third country.” They would be banned from ever reentering the UK. Thousands of migrants from around the world travel to northern France each year in hopes of reaching the UK, drawn by family ties, the English language, or the perceived ease of getting a job. More than 45,000 people arrived in Britain by boat in 2022, up from 28,000 in 2021 and 8,500 in 2020.
Charities and refugee groups say it is unethical, unworkably, and likely illegal. The United Nations’ refugee agency said the law would be a “clear breach of the Refugee Convention” and amount to an “asylum ban.” Legislators from the right wing of the governing Conservative Party want the government to go even further and act to prevent the European Court of Human Rights from blocking deportations.
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