Responding to Restoring order and control: A statement on the government’s asylum and returns policy, Ryan Shorthouse, Executive Chair of Bright Blue, said:
“Politics – at its best and most effective – is about finding and implementing solutions to problems, however large in scale. It is not about positioning against, or winning a war of words against, different factions on the political spectrum. People crossing the English Channel on small boats is a real problem: they are risking and losing their lives, and the country is not controlling who does and does not enter it. We need solutions to this.
“The Home Secretary today is proposing a series of eminently sensible steps to try and reduce the appeal of asylum seekers trying to reach the UK illegally, especially making refugee status temporary, extending the default period of time for them to achieve indefinite leave to remain, introducing mandatory digital ID for all those residing in the UK, and asking those with assets to contribute to the costs of processing their asylum claims. She is also right to seek to expand but cap global resettlement routes so more refugees can come legally and safely from wherever they are in the world.
“But she could have gone further. Firmer penalties – including the suspension of climate finance and international aid, not just visas – should be applied to a wider number of countries that have poor records in taking back failed asylum seekers to the UK from their country. And there was a missed opportunity to significantly differentiate in the entitlements granted to those refugees who have arrived through resettlement routes and those who have arrived illegally.”
There are 3 Bright Blue policies in this policy statement:
- Sanctions (including suspending visas) on countries that do not cooperate with the return of their citizens.
- Introducing a single digital ID that will be mandatory for right-to-work.
- Setting a higher and annual cap on the number of arrivals from wherever in the world that will be accepted through safe and legal routes, particularly individuals identified by referral partners such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Image credits: Steve Cadman
ENDS
Notes to editors
To arrange an interview with a Bright Blue spokesperson or for further media enquiries, please contact Ryan Shorthouse at ryan@brightblue.org.uk or on 07754 672233.
- Bright Blue is the independent think tank for defending and improving liberal society.
- Bright Blue’s Board includes Diane Banks, Philip Clarke, Alexandra Jezeph, Richard Mabey and Ryan Shorthouse.
- Our advisory council can be found here. Members of our advisory council do not necessarily endorse all our policy recommendations, including those included in this press release.
