Stephen Kinnock comments on 616 people detected crossing the Channel in small boats yesterday

Stephen Kinnock MP, Labour’s Shadow Immigration Minister, commenting on 616 people being detected crossing the English Channel in small boats yesterday, said:

"The Prime Minister got over excited last month and declared victory in 'stopping the boats' - despite 10,000 asylum seekers crossing the Channel this year.

"With the weather improving and the number of crossings increasing, Rishi Sunak needs to roll up his sleeves and start doing the hard graft, rather than ploughing on with the headline-chasing, government-by-gimmick approach which landed him in this mess in the first place.

"In short, he needs to stop the boast and start stopping the boats.

"Labour has a comprehensive five-point plan to defeat the criminal smuggler gangs, end the dangerous crossings, clear the growing asylum backlog, and fix an asylum system broken by the Conservatives."

Ends

Notes:

Labour’s five-point plan to reform the asylum system:

1. Crackdown on criminal smuggler gangs, through new Cross-Border Police Unit

A Labour Government would redirect spending from the unworkable Rwanda scheme, which the government has admitted is subject to a very high risk of fraud, to set up a new cross-border police unit to crack down on smuggling gangs. This would include millions of pounds of new investment in the NCA. Officers would be based in the UK and throughout Europe to tackle the gangs upstream. This would be supported with an urgent review to identify the gaps in enforcement against smuggling gangs, with the findings used to lay out an Action Plan to be delivered by the NCA and Border Force, in collaboration with international allies and Europol.

2. Clear the backlog and end hotel use

The Home Office is taking 9,000 fewer asylum decisions a year than they were in 2015, leaving people waiting in limbo for much longer and pushing up accommodation costs. Fast tracking cases for Albania and other safe countries, introducing triage and restoring proper casework standards and targets will mean quicker support for those who are refugees, much quicker returns for those who are not, and stopping costly hotel use.

3. Reform resettlement routes to stop people being exploited by gangs

Labour would redesign the existing resettlement schemes which are not currently working properly so that they include a clearer process for refugees with family connections in the UK to be considered for resettlement, preventing them being exploited by criminal gangs or making dangerous journeys. 

4. New agreement with France and other countries on returns and family reunion

Labour would negotiate a new agreement which includes safe returns and safe family reunions. 

5. Tackle humanitarian crises at source helping refugees in their region

Labour would work in partnership internationally to address some of the humanitarian crises that are leading people to flee their homes including restoring the 0.7% aid commitment when the fiscal situation allows and strengthening support for the people of Afghanistan, currently the largest group trying to cross the Channel.