Lifetime ban for Channel migrants as government vows small boat arrivals will 'never come back'
5 March 2023, 22:59
Migrants who arrive in Britain on small boats will be banned from returning or claiming citizenship under the government's planned immigration laws.
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Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman will seek to make all asylum claims made by Channel migrants inadmissible in the Illegal Migration Bill to be introduced on Tuesday.
The PM on Sunday pledged to halt crossings under new laws aimed at working around the European Convention on Human Rights.
He said that "if you come here illegally, you will not to be able to stay."
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Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: "Enough is enough. The British people want this solved.
“They are sick of tough talk and inadequate action. We must stop the boats."
Home Office figures show 2,950 migrants have crossed the Channel already this year, compared with a record 45,000 during the whole of 2022.
The total cost of the new policies will be around £3 billion, according to The Times.
That's roughly the same amount that the government spends on its current asylum policies each year.
Under the new laws, asylum claims made by those who arrive in the UK on small boats will be inadmissable.
The home secretary will also be expected to send small boat arrivals to Rwanda or a "safe third country" as soon as "reasonably practicable".
Arrivals will also be prevented from claiming asylum while in the UK.
The laws will also seek to ban Channel arrivals from returning once removed.
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