Shabana Mahmood announces major overhaul of UK asylum policy

LONDON: UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has announced sweeping reforms to Britain’s asylum and returns system, outlining measures that will make refugee status temporary and accelerate the deportation of people who enter the country illegally.

Addressing the House of Commons, Mahmood said the world had changed, but the UK’s asylum system had failed to keep pace. “While some are refugees, others are economic migrants seeking to use—and abuse—our asylum system. Even genuine refugees are travelling through safe countries to reach the most attractive destination,” she said.

Mahmood highlighted what she described as an unsustainable burden on the UK. Over the past four years, 400,000 people have sought asylum in Britain, more than 100,000 are currently living in asylum accommodation, and over half of recognised refugees remain on benefits eight years after arrival.

“To the British public, who foot the bill, the system feels out of control and unfair. It feels that way because it is,” Mahmood told MPs, warning that unmanaged migration risked fuelling division. “There is no justification for the violence and racism of a minority, but if we fail to deal with this crisis, we will draw more people down a path that starts with anger and ends in hatred.”

She stressed that the UK remained “open, tolerant and generous,” but said public confidence required the government to control who enters and who must leave the country. “To maintain the generosity that allows us to provide sanctuary, we must restore order and control,” she said.

The government has now published a new asylum policy document titled Restoring Order and Control, aimed at reducing illegal arrivals and increasing removals of people with no right to remain.

Mahmood said the reforms acknowledge an “uncomfortable truth”: asylum claims are falling across Europe but rising in the UK, a trend she attributed partly to the relative generosity of Britain’s system. Nearly 40% of applicants arrive via small boats and dangerous Channel crossings, while a similar proportion enter legally on visitor, work or study visas before claiming asylum.

Under the new policy, refugee status will become temporary rather than permanent. Grants will last two and a half years instead of five and will only be renewed if return to the home country remains impossible. Permanent settlement will require 20 years instead of the current five.

A new “work and study” visa route will be created for refugees who wish to remain and are able to support themselves, offering a faster path to settlement. The government will also consult on withdrawing benefits from refugees who are able to work but choose not to.

Mahmood said the reforms are essential to repair a system she described as “out of control” and to ensure the UK can continue offering protection to those genuinely in need.