Government sees off calls from some Tories to change asylum and immigrations reforms

Attempts by some Conservative peers and MPs to change the government’s controversial asylum and immigration reforms have been unsuccessful.

The Nationality and Borders Bill – which has been branded as “barbaric” by critics – returned to the Commons on Tuesday having been heavily amended by peers in the House of Lords.

Three Conservative MPs – former ministers David Davis, Andrew Mitchell and Simon Hoare – rebelled against the government over plans for an offshore processing system for asylum seekers.

The policy had been beset by problems, with Ghana, Rwanda, Albania and Denmark all refusing to host a UK processing centre.

The latest suggested location, the Ascension Island, is a UK overseas territory over 4,000 miles away.

But Home Office minister Tom Pursglove said it was “untrue” to suggest the island was an option.

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Mr Mitchell questioned how much such a policy would cost, suggesting to ministers that housing asylum seekers in The Ritz Hotel and Eton College would be cheaper than offshoring the process.

“We know that it would be incredibly expensive,” he told the Commons.

“Judged by the costs of Australian offshoring the British taxpayer would face unprecedented costs per asylum seeker. It would be much cheaper to put each one in the The Ritz and send all the under-18s to Eton.

“That would cost a great deal less than what is currently proposed.

“Much more sensible to recruit and train several hundred new civil servants to process these claims more rapidly, and yes, to crackdown on an over-lengthy appeals process exploited through unscrupulous lawyers.”

Mr Davis has previously described such a move as creating “a British Guantanamo Bay”.

The former cabinet minister told MPs on Tuesday that offshoring asylum seekers would be a “moral, economic and practical failure”.

Minister: ‘Clear rationale’ for policy

Mr Pursglove said he “cannot give a running commentary” on the potential costs and locations for overseas asylum processing.

He told MPs there is “clear rationale” for the policy, adding: “Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children will not have their claims processed overseas.”

Home Secretary Priti Patel has repeatedly said she wants to go ahead with the processing system which has previously been used by Australia.

Peers removed this section from the bill last month, but today MPs voted by 302 votes to 232, majority 70, to disagree with the Lords and put it back in.

MPs reject plan to cut time asylum seekers must wait before working

Meanwhile two Conservative MPs – Mr Hoare and fellow former minister Tim Loughton – defied the government in backing an attempt from peers to cut the time asylum seekers have to wait before they can work from 12 to six months.

MPs rejected the Lords amendment by 291 votes to 232 – a majority of 59 votes – but the government did offer to meet concerned Tory MPs to discuss the issue further.

Opposition parties also backed both amendments plus a number of other proposed changes to the bill which were also voted down.

Another was a Lords amendment which sought to guarantee the UK takes in at least 10,000 refugees a year, which was rejected by 313 votes to 227 – a majority of 86 votes.

The legislation has come under renewed scrutiny in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has sparked a humanitarian crisis as millions of civilians flee.

This proposal came in light of the Home Office’s attempts to set up new schemes for refugees from both Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul and Ukraine after the outbreak of war.

Bill to return to the Lords

The legislation will now return to the Lords for peers to examine again in what is known as ‘parliamentary ping-pong’.

Ministers say the bill – which implements a post-Brexit asylum system in the UK – will create a “firm but fair” process allowing the country to “take full control of its borders”.

It comes as Ms Patel is facing pressure to reduce the numbers trying to get to the UK by crossing the channel on boats.

The Home Office said authorities rescued or intercepted 213 people on six boats on Monday.

Since the start of the year, more than 2,800 people have reached the UK after navigating busy shipping lanes from France in small boats, according to data compiled by the PA news agency.

That is more than three times the amount recorded this time last year.

Watch and follow the chancellor’s spring statement on Wednesday from 12.30pm on Sky News

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