Denmark Driven by the right - London wants to tighten the asylum system
Under pressure from right-wing populist opponents, Britain's social democratic government has announced a drastic tightening of asylum rules. The reasons for reform are "staggeringly" simple, writes Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the foreword to the strategy paper. Regulated migration through "safe and legal" channels requires "an approach with a stronger deterrent effect and consistently enforced rules".
17.11.2025, 18:49
17.11.2025, 19:31
SDA
The government published the reform paper entitled "Restoring Order and Control" the afternoon before Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood presented the reform to Parliament. She knew that the British people did not want isolation, Mahmood said in the House of Commons that evening. "But until we restore order and control, those who want to divide us will only grow stronger."
The reform provides for a change in the asylum system away from long-term protection to a very limited period of basic protection that is regularly reviewed. The British government calls this "core protection".
The key points of the reform
* The UK wants to abolish the state obligation to support asylum seekers, which was introduced under EU law in 2005 - 15 years before Brexit. Anyone who is able to work and support themselves in the UK but fails to do so will forfeit their legally guaranteed entitlement to accommodation and financial support. The same should apply to asylum seekers who break the law.
* Those who enter the country are to be granted permanent residence rights after 20 years at the earliest and only if certain criteria are met. Previously, this was only possible after five years.
* Refugee status should be limited in time and reviewed regularly. Refugees are currently granted a right of residence for five years, in future it will only be 30 months. This period is only to be extended if people are still considered to be in need of protection. Refugees must therefore fear deportation as soon as their home countries are classified as safe.
* There will no longer be any entitlement to family reunification. Only when people receive a work visa under the asylum program will they be allowed to bring their family to the UK.
* The Home Office is to be empowered to reclaim support costs if assets were not declared or converted into cash at the time they were granted. According to The Times newspaper, this would involve the withholding of valuables, but those without sentimental value - heirlooms or wedding rings, for example, would be exempt.
* The government wants to examine the resumption of forced returns to countries to which no routine returns have been made in recent years, including Syria. In addition, significantly more families are to be repatriated, including forcibly.
1. https://dpaq.de/bCU7bHR 2. https://dpaq.de/COtCHP3
Why is the reform coming now?
Starmer's government has been under pressure for months from the right-wing populist Reform UK party led by Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage. Reform is leading in the polls, in some cases significantly, and would have a good chance of forming the government if elections were held today. However, the next general election is not scheduled until 2029.
Farage's favorite topic is (irregular) migration - when presenting his own plan to tighten the laws, he announced large-scale deportations. When asked on Monday whether the government was using the language of reform, a spokesperson for Starmer replied: "No", it was about dealing with the chaos in the asylum system.
Immigration on small boats across the English Channel is a controversial topic in the debate. Farage is playing on the fear in parts of the population of male, irregularly arrived foreigners who allegedly pose a threat to society. Despite agreements with France and the European Union, the Labour government has not yet managed to reduce the influx across the Channel.
More refugees coming across the English Channel
So far this year, around 40,000 people have crossed the English Channel to the UK irregularly. The number has risen significantly compared to 2023 and 2024. One of the embarrassments for the government was that a migrant who had been deported as part of a repatriation agreement with France re-entered the country.
In 2024, 84,200 asylum applications were made by 108,100 people in the UK, the highest number of applications ever recorded. Between 2011 and 2020, it remained relatively constant at an average of 27,500 applications per year. By comparison, 250,945 people applied for asylum in Germany in 2024 (229,751 initial and 21,194 subsequent applications). In the current year 2025 to September, there have been around 124,410 so far (87,787/36,623).
Asylum seekers and refugees made up around 13 percent of immigrants in the UK in 2024. According to the PA news agency, 834,977 visas were issued in the year to June. Of this number, the most common nationality was Indian, accounting for almost a fifth. According to the Home Office, most people who entered the country irregularly came from Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iran, Sudan and Syria.
Initial assessment of the reform
"It's not going to be a silver bullet, and I think the government knows that," migration researcher Peter Walsh from Oxford University told the BBC. The reform takes a broader approach. But it remains to be seen whether people will be deterred by it. The government is up against gangs of people smugglers who have shown that they can adapt quickly, said Walsh.
It also remains to be seen how much support there is for the reform within the Labor Party. Starmer has had a large majority in parliament since winning the election in the summer of 2024 and could actually easily push through proposed legislation. However, there have been repeated disputes within the governing party in recent months. Even now, there are signs that some backbenchers - particularly from the left wing of the party - are opposing it.
In contrast, the asylum reform has received support from an unusual quarter: from the conservative and opposition Tories. Their party leader Kemi Badenoch has signaled her intention to support the plans. "What we see from the Labour government are steps in the right direction, and we want to encourage them in this right direction," said Badenoch.
