Communities Secretary Steve Reed has said the government is “absolutely committed” to pushing through major asylum reforms, despite a backlash from some Labour MPs.Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced a series of changes, including forcing refugees to wait 20 years for permanent residency and deporting more families who have been rejected for asylum.Deporting children is controversial for a number of Labour figures, including MP Stella Creasy, who said it is “not the British way”, and peer Lord Dubs, who criticised “using children as a weapon”.Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the proposals did not go far enough but suggested her party could offer support to get them through Parliament.Over the past year, the government has been forced to backtrack on some of its policies – including cuts to welfare and the winter fuel payment – after objections from its own MPs.Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Reed said the government was aiming to create a “fair, tolerant and compassionate” asylum system.Asked about disquiet within his own party, the communities secretary responded: “We are absolutely committed to [the plans]… We can’t go on like this, it is tearing the country apart in many respects.”Reed highlighted the “perverse incentives” in the current system, which he said were encouraging families to cross the Channel in small boats.”We know that we have to end this vile trade in human lives,” he said. “Over the last year, 14 children who were put on those dangerous dinghies and pushed out into the English Channel lost their lives when those boats capsized…”The current system cre …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnCommunities Secretary Steve Reed has said the government is “absolutely committed” to pushing through major asylum reforms, despite a backlash from some Labour MPs.Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced a series of changes, including forcing refugees to wait 20 years for permanent residency and deporting more families who have been rejected for asylum.Deporting children is controversial for a number of Labour figures, including MP Stella Creasy, who said it is “not the British way”, and peer Lord Dubs, who criticised “using children as a weapon”.Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the proposals did not go far enough but suggested her party could offer support to get them through Parliament.Over the past year, the government has been forced to backtrack on some of its policies – including cuts to welfare and the winter fuel payment – after objections from its own MPs.Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Reed said the government was aiming to create a “fair, tolerant and compassionate” asylum system.Asked about disquiet within his own party, the communities secretary responded: “We are absolutely committed to [the plans]… We can’t go on like this, it is tearing the country apart in many respects.”Reed highlighted the “perverse incentives” in the current system, which he said were encouraging families to cross the Channel in small boats.”We know that we have to end this vile trade in human lives,” he said. “Over the last year, 14 children who were put on those dangerous dinghies and pushed out into the English Channel lost their lives when those boats capsized…”The current system cre …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
