'Restoring control at borders not a betrayal of Labour values', home secretary to say - as she sets out immigration shake-up

Restoring control of the borders is not a betrayal of Labour values, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will say as she sets out more reforms to the immigration system.

In a speech to the centre-left think tank IPPR on Thursday, the cabinet minister will urge her party not to shift leftwards after its resounding defeat in the Gorton and Denton by-election.

It comes as Sky News has learned that almost £400m has been saved in asylum accommodation and support costs after a crackdown on tourists abusing the UK's immigration system.

In her speech, Ms Mahmood will outline the case for a position between Reform leader Nigel Farage's "nightmare pulling up the drawbridge and shutting out the world" and Green Party leader Zack Polanski's "fairytale of open borders".

She will say: "Restoring order and control at our border is not a betrayal of Labour values, it is an embodiment of them, and it is the necessary condition for a Labour government to achieve anything it hopes to."

Under the plans, people granted asylum in the UK will have their refugee status reviewed every 30 months.

The current rules say those granted refugee status have it for five years and can then apply for indefinite leave to remain and get on a route to citizenship.

Meanwhile, asylum seekers who break the law or work illegally are to be thrown out of government-funded accommodation and lose their support payments.

The rule change, coming into force in June, means only those with legitimate asylum claims who follow the rules will get taxpayer-funded support.

It means the statutory legal duty under EU law to provide asylum seekers with support and accommodation will be replaced with a conditional approach.

It comes after Ms Mahmood visited Denmark, where a social democratic-led government has drastically reduced the number of asylum applications to the lowest number in 40 years and removed 95% of rejected asylum seekers.

She has made little secret of her admiration for the approach, and will say her reforms will offer "a compassionate but controlled asylum system".

"Firm, but fair," she will claim.

Warning of the rise of the far right, the home secretary will outline in her speech: "When people see small boat arrivals at their current scale or they feel the pace and scale of migration today, they feel like we have lost control.

"A loss of control breeds fear and, when fearful, people turn inwards. Their vision of this country narrows.

"Their patriotism turns into something smaller, something darker, an ethno-nationalism emerges.

"The idea of a greater Britain gives way to the lure of a littler England. And other voices - voices to the far right - take hold."

Read more:
Can Mahmood's radical immigration changes save Labour?
UK's first visa ban in asylum crackdown

Green Party policy a 'fairytale'

Ms Mahmood is expected to describe the Green Party's migration policy as a "fairytale".

She will say: "A party leader who seeks the highest office in the land should not be on the beaches of France helping migrants on to small boats encouraging them to make a perilous crossing.

"Creating further incentives to come to this country illegally, increasing the already vast burden placed on taxpayers in this country.

"Polanski calls for the most expensive and expansive migration policies anywhere in the world."

The new rules come as over £370m has been saved in crackdown on asylum claims by tourists.

The Home Office said asylum claims by nationals from Jordan, Colombia and Trinidad and Tobago have fallen by 93% since visit visas were introduced.

These controls are estimated to have prevented more than 6,000 people claiming asylum and over £370m in associated costs since July 2024.

Nicaraguan and Saint Lucian nationals will also have to apply for a visit visa to travel to the UK.

Watch Trevor Phillips' exclusive interview with Shabana Mahmood in a Politics Hub special from 7pm on Thursday 5 March across all Sky News platforms.

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