Name: Immigration and Asylum Bill
Uploaded: 2026-10-22T10:30:06+00:00
Duration: 5708 s

00:04 - 00:55

Speaker 1

Order. We are now sitting in public and the proceedings are being broadcast. Today we will continue line-by-line scrutiny of the Immigration and Asylum Bill. Before we begin, I would like to remind members to please switch electronic devices to silent. Tea and coffee are not allowed during sittings.

The selection list for today's sitting is available in the room and on the parliamentary website. This shows how the clauses, schedules, and selected amendments have been grouped together for debate. Members are reminded to bob and catch my eye if they wish to speak in any debate. We start today with group 19 and government amendment 133 to clause 22, with which it will be convenient to consider clause 22 stand part and new clause 61. I call the minister to move government amendment 133.

00:55 - 01:43

Speaker 5

Thank you very much, Mrs. Barklem. It's a pleasure as always to serve under your chairmanship. Obviously we're coming later in a later grouping to the clauses themselves, but I thought I would, if the committee will bear with me, just set out some reminders about the purposes of these clauses to which the amendments refer, just to give some context to the discussion and debate that I look forward to this morning. Clause 22 provides that those who are excluded from the protections of the Refugee Convention because they have committed a particularly serious crime or who are a danger to the security of the UK cannot expect the same entitlements as refugees who comply with our laws and contribute positively to life in this country. The UK has a proud tradition of providing protection to those who need it in accordance with our international obligations.

01:43 - 02:27

Speaker 6

It is right that we help individuals from around the world who are fleeing conflict and oppression. But the asylum system must be a fair and effective one so that we can better protect, support, and focus our efforts on those in genuine need of protection. And those who break our laws and undermine our way of life do not deserve to have our support or indulgence any longer. Those granted refugee or human rights protection status are provided with the rights, sorry, are provided with the rights and support necessary to rebuild their lives, to integrate into our communities, to support themselves and their families, and to contribute to the UK. But we are equally clear that those who commit serious crimes are not welcome here.

02:27 - 03:12

Speaker 4

Those that can will be deported, and those who we are unable to remove will be denied those benefits of protection status. They cannot expect the same treatment as refugees who respect our laws. Through their serious offending, they've demonstrated conduct which justifies a different approach to the benefits and entitlements associated with protection status. All those who claim asylum undergo a series of security checks against immigration and police databases and are screened to identify individuals who may have been involved in criminality both in the UK and outside the UK or are of national security interest. Through the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act of 2025, we've already acted to ensure that those guilty of the most serious crimes will not be welcome here.

03:12 - 03:27

Speaker 2

We've expanded the definition of a particularly serious crime so that any registered sex offender and individual convicted of a schedule 3 sex offence is denied protection status alongside individuals who've received a custodial sentence of 12 years or more.

03:26 - 03:27

I will indeed.

03:27 - 03:50

Speaker 3

I thank my honorable friend for giving way. In rural constituencies like mine, a huge issue is the concern that there isn't the support anymore for the immigration asylum system. Can she explain how she believes that these changes will actually give people the surety that there is a safeguard in place to make sure that those who are threats to not only individuals but our nation will not be welcomed here?

03:27 - 03:27

Will my honourable friend give way?

03:50 - 04:27

Speaker 4

The honorable gentleman makes an extremely important point and one that my constituents share with his. Real concern that anybody who comes here who breaks our rules should not enjoy the benefits that we provide those who are genuinely here fleeing persecution and abide by the rules and the standards we expect of them. And I think no one in this committee should be in any doubt about our intention to ensure that those who have committed serious offenses are deported. We've deported over 12,000 foreign national offenders since we came to power, which is up by 41% on the two years previous to us being in power. So no one should be in any doubt, as I say, for our determination.