Illegal Migration Bill to Become Law After Government Sees Off Final Lords Challenges

A group of illegal immigrants are brought by a Border Force vessel to Dover, Kent, on July 18, 2023. Gareth Fuller/PA Media

Government plans to tackle illegal immigration across the English Channel are poised to become law after ministers saw off a series of renewed challenges in the House of Lords.

Under the Illegal Migration Bill, anyone who arrives in the UK illegally will be banned from claiming asylum, and will be deported to their home country or a safe third country like Rwanda, and will also be banned from reentry.

On Monday evening, the Conservative frontbench in the upper house saw off five attempts from opposition peers to seek further concessions from the government, including modern slavery protections and child detention limits.

At least one other vote was ditched in the face of the government’s victories.

Undated file photo of the Houses of Parliament in London. Stefan Rousseau/PA

Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who has been a strident critic of the bill, also dropped his demand for a statement on tackling the refugee problem and human trafficking to the UK, after a similar proposal was rejected by MPs.

It marked the ending of the parliamentary tussle over the flagship legislation, paving the way for the bill to receive royal assent and formally enter the statute books.

‘No Longer Sustainable’

Ministers had urged the Lords to allow the bill to become law after signalling no further concessions were planned.

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick said last week that the government would make no more compromises, as critics of the bill had not put forward any “credible alternative.”

Addressing peers ahead of Monday’s votes, Home Office minister Lord Murray of Blidworth said the number of small boat arrivals had “overwhelmed” the UK’s asylum system and was costing taxpayers £6 million a day to provide accommodation.

A group of people thought to be illegal immigrants gesture as they leave onboard a coach from the Manston immigration short-term holding facility located at the former Defence Fire Training and Development Centre in Thanet, Kent, on Nov. 2, 2022. Gareth Fuller/PA Media

He told peers: “With over 45,000 people making dangerous Channel crossings last year this is simply no longer sustainable.

“If people know there is no way for them to stay in the UK, they won’t risk their lives and pay criminals thousands of pounds to arrive here illegally.

“It is therefore only right that we stop the boats and break the business model of the criminal gangs exploiting vulnerable people, ultimately enabling the government to have greater capacity to provide a safe haven for those at risk of war and persecution.”

He urged the Lords to “respect the will of the elected House and the British people by passing this bill.”

Worsening Crisis

The illegal immigration crisis in the English Channel has worsened in recent years despite the government’s promises to make the route “unviable.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made stopping small boat crossings one of his priorities for the year, after 45,755 illegal immigrants crossed the Channel in small boats in 2022, setting a new record.

Though the Illegal Migration Bill has cleared both houses of Parliament, the government’s plan to deport illegal immigrants to Rwanda is still facing resistance in the courts.

Last month, judges at the Court of Appeal overturned an earlier High Court ruling and ruled that the policy is “unlawful.”

The judges said deficiencies in the Rwanda asylum system mean there is a risk asylum seekers could be returned to their home country, where they may face the risk of inhumane treatment.

Mr. Sunak said he “fundamentally” disagrees with the ruling and insisted Rwanda is a safe country.

Last week, the government was given the go-ahead to take a legal battle to the Supreme Court.

Tug boat Mercia pulls the Bibby Stockholm accommodation barge into Portland in Dorset, on July 18, 2023. Ben Birchall/PA Media

Migrant Barge

Meanwhile, an accommodation barge has arrived at Dorset’s Portland Port, where it will house 500 illegal immigrants.

Bibby Stockholm was pulled by a tug into the port on Tuesday morning, a month behind schedule.

The barge left Falmouth, Cornwall, on Monday after undergoing work to prepare it for its new role.

Rival protesters argue after the Bibby Stockholm accommodation barge arrived in Portland, in Dorset, on July 18, 2023. Ben Birchall/PA Media

But locals in Dorset have raised concerns about the Portland site being used to house illegals.

Downing Street defended the use of barges to house illegal immigrants, insisting it is a cheaper alternative to housing them in hotels.

The first illegal immigrants are expected to board the Bibby Stockholm later this month.

PA Media contributed to this report.