UK announces sweeping asylum overhaul to curb irregular immigration and counter far-right support

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is due to lay out the proposals in parliament on Monday, promising to "end UK's golden ticket for asylum seekers."

Key Changes to Asylum Policy

Under the new policy, the period of protection for successful asylum-seekers arriving in the UK will be drastically reduced, and the path to permanent residency will be significantly extended:

• Refugee Status Duration: Cut from five years to 30 months (two and a half years).

• Permanent Residency: Asylum seekers will have to wait 20 years to apply for permanent residency, up from the current five years.

• Review and Return: Protections will be "regularly reviewed," and refugees will be encouraged to return to their home countries once those countries are deemed safe.

• Support Cuts: Guarantees of housing and weekly financial allowances for refugees will be removed, and rules around family reunions will be tightened.

Mahmood stated that the measures are intended to make the UK less attractive for irregular migrants and to streamline the process for removing those already in the country.

Immigration Statistics and Political Context

Since the Labour government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, came to power in July 2024, it has faced pressure over increasing levels of irregular immigration:

• Channel Crossings: More than 39,000 people have arrived in the UK this year alone via dangerous crossings from northern France on small boats. This figure is already higher than the total for the whole of 2024.

• Asylum Claims: Asylum claims in Britain are at a record high, with approximately 111,000 applications made in the year to June 2025, according to official figures.

The phenomenon of "small boats" has been heavily exploited by the far-right Reform UK party and its leader, Nigel Farage, which has led Labour by double-digit margins in recent opinion polls. The government is hoping the policy overhaul will curtail this shift in support among traditional working-class Labour voters.

Criticism from Charities

The proposed changes have drawn strong condemnation from aid groups. More than 100 British charities wrote to the Home Secretary, urging her to "end the scapegoating of migrants and performative policies that only cause harm," warning that such steps risk fueling racism and violence.

The head of Britain's Refugee Council, Enver Solomon, argued that the measures "will not deter" people from attempting to reach Britain and called for a rethink, emphasizing that refugees should be able to build secure, settled lives and contribute to their communities.