PRESS RELEASE : Illegal Migration Bill in Lords for second reading [May 2023]
The press release issued by the Home Office on 10 May 2023.
The government’s Illegal Migration Bill to stop the boats is continuing its progress through Parliament.
The new legislation will break the business model of the people smuggling gangs, restore fairness to the UK’s asylum system and deter migrants from making the treacherous journey across the Channel by removing those arriving illegally to their home country, if it is safe, or a safe third country where their claims can be heard.
As the Prime Minister has set out, stopping the boats to ensure no one can use this dangerous and illegal route to the UK, is one of the government’s 5 top priorities.
Recent amendments ensure the bill will better deter people from making last minute claims in an attempt to avoid removal, and set out the government’s commitment to provide safe and legal routes for those most in need. Together these strengthened the bill to further reassure it is both legally watertight and clear on the protections available to children.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman said:
We cannot allow a system to continue which incentivises people to risk their lives and pay people smugglers to come to this country illegally.
This is neither compassionate nor fair – which is why our Illegal Migration Bill is designed to end illegal entry as a route to asylum in the UK by deterring migrants from making the journey in the first place.
The British people want us to stop the boats. That is exactly what this bill will help us do. It has been designed with the assistance of some of the country’s finest legal minds to ensure it delivers for the British public in a manner consistent with rule of law and robust to legal challenge.
We are committed to ensuring that this legislation passes through Parliament as soon as possible, and urge the Lords to back the bill, so we can get on with stopping the boats.
Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Alex Chalk MP said:
This bill gives us the robust but fair legal framework needed to remove illegal migrants swiftly and curb last-minute challenges, while ensuring proper opportunity to appeal remains.
The rule of law is undermined if immigration rules set by Parliament are not upheld.
The Illegal Migration Bill recently passed through the House of Commons, with a majority of 289 votes to 230. It now progresses through the House of Lords, starting with its second reading.
This provides a first opportunity for peers across the House to debate the principles of the bill. The Lords will then begin detailed clause-by-clause scrutiny of the bill at committee stage provisionally starting at the end of May.
