Explorer

'If You Come Illegally...': UK PM Rishi Sunak Unveils New Law To Stop Illegal Migrants

UK PM Rishi Sunak said, "If you come here illegally, you can't claim asylum. You can't benefit from our modern slavery protections. You can't make spurious human rights claims and you can't stay."

New Delhi: Amid an outcry from human rights campaigners, the UK government on Tuesday unveiled a new plan to stop migrants from crossing the Channel illegally on small boats.

"If you come here illegally, you can't claim asylum. You can't benefit from our modern slavery protections. You can't make spurious human rights claims and you can't stay," Rishi Sunak said in a tweet.

"We will detain those who come here illegally and then remove them in weeks, either to their own country if it is safe to do so. Or to a Safe Third Country like Rwanda and once you are removed, you will be banned as you are in America and Australia from ever re-entering our country," he added.

While announcing the new Illegal Migration Bill in the House of Commons, Britain’s Indian-origin Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, said, "They will not stop coming here until the world knows that if you enter Britain illegally you will be detained and swiftly removed back to your country, if it is safe, or a safe third country such as Rwanda."

"And that is precisely what this bill will do. That is how we will stop the boats," she said.

"For a government not to respond to waves of illegal migrants breaching our borders would be to betray the will of the people we were elected to serve," she added.

Braverman further stated, "Now, the United Kingdom must always support the world’s most vulnerable. Since 2015, we have given sanctuary to nearly half a million people. These include 150,000 people from Hong Kong, 160,000 people from Ukraine, 25,000 Afghans fleeing the Taliban."

Under the new law, it will be her duty as Home Secretary “to remove" those entering the UK via illegal routes. This will take legal precedence over someone's right to claim asylum – although there will be exemptions for under-18s, those with serious medical conditions, and some "at real risk of serious and irreversible harm," according to PTI.

The bill allows for the detention of illegal arrivals without bail or judicial review within the first 28 days of detention, until they can be removed.

Refugee charities and human rights groups have warned of the legal implications for vulnerable asylum seekers.

"Of course, the UK will always seek to uphold international law and I am confident that this bill is compatible with international obligations," Braverman insisted in the Commons.

(With inputs from PTI)

View More
Advertisement
Advertisement
25°C
New Delhi
Rain: 100mm
Humidity: 97%
Wind: WNW 47km/h
See Today's Weather
powered by
Accu Weather
Advertisement

Top Headlines

MEA Confirms Receiving Note Verbale From Bangladesh Seeking Sheikh Hasina's Extradition
MEA Confirms Receiving Note Verbale From Bangladesh Seeking Sheikh Hasina's Extradition
Centre Allows Schools To Fail Students In Classes 5 And 8, Amends RTE Rules
Centre Allows Schools To Fail Students In Classes 5 And 8, Amends RTE Rules
Delhi High Court Refuses Anticipatory Bail To Ex-IAS Probationer Puja Khedkar: 'Classic Case Of Fraud'
Delhi HC Refuses Anticipatory Bail To Ex-IAS Probationer Puja Khedkar: 'Classic Case Of Fraud'
Rahul Gandhi In Parbhani Accuses CM Fadnavis Of Lying About Custodial Death, Says Man ‘Killed’ Because He Was Dalit
Rahul Gandhi In Parbhani Accuses CM Fadnavis Of Lying About Custodial Death, Says Man ‘Killed’ Because He Was Dalit
Advertisement
ABP Premium

Videos

Sambhal News: Two New Corridors Found in Ancient Stepwell Excavation in ChandausiLucknow Police Encounters Robbers, Arrests Trio Involved in Bank Heist, One InjuredSambhal Stepwell Excavation: Truth to be Revealed, Major Discoveries Await - ABP NewsProtests Outside Allu Arjun's House Over 'Pushpa 2' Stampede Incident, Accused Granted Bail

Photo Gallery

Embed widget