Countries that refuse to cooperate by not taking back their migrants might face reduced access to visas, as announced by the new Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood.
This could result in citizens who wish to travel legally being penalized if their home governments do not collaborate on deportations with Britain and other key nations.
The UK, United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand – members of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance – gathered in London today to deliberate on this proposal.
Ms. Mahmood stated, ‘For nations that are uncooperative, we have been discussing the possibility of taking more coordinated actions among the Five Eyes countries.
‘This might involve reducing visas in the future, signaling our expectation for countries to cooperate and adhere to the rules. If a citizen from your country has no right to be in ours, they need to be taken back.’
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, center, stands with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Canada’s Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree, Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, and New Zealand’s Attorney General Judith Collins at the opening of a “Five Eyes” security alliance summit in central London.
The Five Eyes summit delegates stand next to a drone on the grounds of the Honourable Artillery Company in central London
She added that the proposal was an ‘interesting space for collaboration, particularly on how we deal with countries who do not take their citizens back’.
Vowing to do ‘whatever it takes’ to stop small boat crossings, she added: ‘This is a Labour Government with Labour policy and Labour proposals.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, left, greets United States Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ahead of the Five Eyes meeting at the Honourable Artillery Company in London
Ms Mahmood also posed with Australian Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke ahead of the security alliance meeting
‘We’ve been looking at this for some time.
‘It’s been discussed already across the Government and I’m very clear that there has to be a strong approach to maintaining our border, and that does mean saying to countries who do not take their citizens back that we’re not simply going to allow our laws to remain unenforced.’
Five Eyes alliance delegates – left to right – New Zealand minister Judith Collins, UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree, US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Australian Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke met in central London today
However, the proposal is likely to rely on measures first announced by Tory home secretary Dame Priti Patel in 2021, who went on to introduce legislation the following year.
The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 created powers for the home secretary to introduce a ‘visa penalty provision’ against another country.
It would apply if ‘the government of the country is not co-operating in relation to the return to the country from the United Kingdom of any of its nationals’, the law states.
Today’s announcement is the first outlined by Ms Mahmood whose predecessor at the Home Office, Yvette Cooper, was moved sideways to become Foreign Secretary last week, after failing to get a grip on the small boats crisis.
Exact details of the proposals have yet to be announced.
It remains unclear whether it will be a reciprocal deal under which citizens of a third country which failed to co-operate with Britain would also face visa restrictions to the other Five Eyes nations.
It comes after the number of small boat crossings reached more than 30,000 so far this year, including 1,097 on Saturday alone. Arrivals are up 37 per cent on the same point last year.
Ministers are examining using military bases to house asylum seekers as PM Sir Keir Starmer struggles to get a grip on the migrant crisis.
Defence minister Luke Pollard indicated today that previously-scrapped plans to accommodate migrants at the historic Dambusters base at RAF Scampton could be back on the cards.
Under the previous Conservative government almost £50million was spent on plans to turn the disused Lincolnshire site into an asylum camp.
But Labour canned the project in September 2024 saying that it would not provide ‘value for money’.
But today Mr Pollard said MoD military planners were reviewing all sites including Scampton as part of a new government push to close down migrant hotels..
He said: ‘The Home Office has looked at accommodation, has decided against accommodation that the Ministry of Defence offered in the past.
‘But we’re looking at all of them again at the moment.
‘We’re looking at all the military sites that the MoD has.
‘Some of those have been visited by the Home Office in the past, both under this Government and especially under the previous administration.’
