UK migrant laws: Scottish Government has 'serious concerns' about Bill to block non-legal migrants from applying for asylum

Social justice secretary Shona Robison said there should be “safe and legal” routes for people fleeing persecution and war in their home countries. The UK Government is on Tuesday set to unveil proposals for new powers to crack down on small-boat crossings in the Channel.

Instead, anyone arriving in Britain through a non-agreed asylum scheme will be immediately shipped to another country, including Rwanda, where the UK Government last year made an agreement to send certain asylum seekers who arrived in the UK through non-legal routes.

The new Illegal Migration Bill is expected to make asylum claims entirely inadmissible from those who travel to the UK on small boats. It will also put a duty on the home secretary to detain and deport anyone who enters the country illegally.

Migrants are escorted ashore from the UK Border Force vessel 'BF Ranger' in Dover, southeast England, on Monday, after having been picked up at sea while attempting to cross the English Channel. Picture: AFP via Getty Images

Ms Robison said: “The Scottish Government has made clear to the UK Government on a number of occasions the significant concerns we have about their New Plan for Immigration and their Nationality and Borders Act. Scottish ministers believe there should be fair and humane asylum and immigration systems in Scotland and elsewhere, which uphold the UN Refugee Convention and support people in need of protection.”

The Scottish minister added: “We will continue to urge the UK Government to ensure that there are safe and legal routes for people seeking protection. This is the only way to break the business model of human traffickers who exploit people forced to flee their homes due to war or persecution.

“Scotland should be an open and welcoming country, in control of its own immigration system. With independence, Scotland can leave behind the ‘hostile environment’ that characterises the UK’s approach. Instead, we would encourage and support people to make Scotland their home.”

More than 45,000 people entered the UK via Channel crossings last year, up from around 300 in 2018. The latest Home Office figures show 2,950 migrants have crossed the Channel already this year.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been under considerable pressure from his own backbenches to tackle illegal migration.