Migration bill: Minister accuses Lords of trying to wreck asylum reforms

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick has accused peers of "wrecking" the government's asylum reforms, arsenic MPs hole for cardinal votes connected the plans.

Mr Jenrick said ministers could not enactment immoderate of the changes peers made to the Illegal Migration Bill.

MPs are expected to overturn astir of the 20 changes to the measure voted done by the House of Lords.

But the authorities has offered immoderate concessions, including connected detention limits for children and large women.

MPs are debating the measure successful the Commons, wherever they are expected to formed a bid of votes connected amendments backed by the Lords.

The measure is cardinal to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's pledge to halt tiny boats crossing the English Channel.

The latest figures amusement much than 13,000 migrants person made the crossing truthful acold this year, including much than 1,600 successful the past 4 days.

Earlier, Mr Sunak said helium was "throwing perfectly everything" astatine tackling Channel crossings and insisted his program to halt the boats was "working".

But backmost successful Parliament, the transition of the Illegal Migration Bill has not been easy, with peers demanding changes and campaigners calling connected MPs to cull the government's proposals.

The measure is the government's effort to deter radical from making the crossing by toughening up the rules and conditions astir seeking asylum.

It would spot a ineligible work connected the authorities to detain and region migrants arriving successful the UK illegally, either to Rwanda oregon different "safe" 3rd country.

The measure primitively removed the existing clip limits connected however agelong unaccompanied children and large women could beryllium detained, but they were reinstated by peers.

On Monday night, ministers projected an amendment to let migration bail to beryllium granted aft 8 days to unaccompanied children successful detention.

The authorities has besides agreed to support the existent bounds connected detaining large women astatine 72 hours. But ministers volition inactive person powers to widen detention to 7 days.

Another caller alteration means the work connected the location caput to region anyone entering the UK without support volition lone use erstwhile the authorities becomes law, not retrospectively.

Some of the government's critics implicit the kid detention contented person said they volition judge the eight-day compromise, but mean to propulsion for much concessions connected the prime of accommodation provided.

Opening Tuesday's debate, Mr Jenrick paid tribute to the Lords for "undertaking its due relation arsenic a revising chamber".

But helium added: "Some of the changes made by the House of Lords are however, small abbreviated of wrecking amendments, and not 1 that the authorities tin support."

Mr Jenrick said it was "vital" that the measure is passed rapidly and described amendments made by the Lords arsenic being "riddled with exceptions and get-out clauses".

Mr Kinnock said the measure would "only marque a unspeakable concern worse" by expanding the asylum backlog, and "ensure radical smugglers are laughing each the mode to the bank".

With Parliament owed to interruption for summertime astatine the extremity of adjacent week, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the government's proposals would assistance the "crucial" caller instrumentality walk "swiftly".

It would besides "send a wide connection that the exploitation of children and susceptible people, utilized by criminals and ferried crossed the Channel, cannot continue," she added.

The government's efforts to curb the fig of tiny boats crossing the Channel person been hampered successful Parliament and the courts.

A program to location asylum seekers connected a barge moored successful Dorset has been delayed.

And the government's argumentation of sending migrants to Rwanda is acceptable for a ineligible conflict successful the Supreme Court.

On Monday, a elder Home Office authoritative confirmed the section was paying to support astir 5,000 beds bare crossed the country, successful lawsuit a abrupt influx of migrants caused overcrowding astatine detention centres.

The authorities has stressed it remains committed to its program to region migrants to Rwanda, and has said it volition situation a Court of Appeal ruling past week that this was unlawful.