The King’s Speech yesterday, along with the briefing notes published afterwards, outlines the plan to introduce a new Immigration and Asylum Bill to “increase confidence in the security of the immigration and asylum systems”.
It is no novelty that this government is trying to win support from the right by taking a hard line against immigration. It is also no surprise that they are using deceitful justifications to do so:
– The government compares a 74% surge in asylum claims in the UK since 2021 with a 26% rise across the European Union. Setting aside the fact that these numbers change massively when comparing with specific countries within the EU, this leaves out some of the key reasons why people would choose to come to the UK, such as family relations or language. Both intrinsically tied to the UK’s colonial history.
– They blame asylum-seekers for the cost of accommodation, conveniently erasing from the narrative the fact that costs can add up when people have been waiting in the asylum system for years for a decision without being allowed to work. Asylum seekers want to work, provide for themselves and their families, and contribute to society, and have been calling for this for years.
– A pledge to open safe and legal routes as an alternative to small boat crossings is also mentioned. But while this has been called for from a wide range of sectors for years, successive governments, including this one, have maintained that these already exist and introduced no real changes.
The government claims to seek a fair asylum system. But a fair asylum system cannot by any means be one that increases insecurity and anxiety for those who need respite after fleeing violence, persecution and trauma. The changes already introduced, and those further planned, will undoubtedly cause more harm.
Organisations supporting asylum-seekers have seen first-hand how flawed decision-making can put people’s lives at risk. Reducing people’s possibilities of challenging those decisions is far from “fair”.
Lastly, we are hugely concerned by this government’s rhetoric around the alleged misuse of the modern slavery system. Organisations across the sector have repeatedly asked for evidence of this misuse and, where none has been presented, have instead consistently shown that modern slavery referrals increase as understanding and identification of these crimes improve across different levels of society, and the high number of positive decisions by the same government back this claim.
‘Late’ presentation of evidence is not an indication of misuse. Structural failings prevent victims from accessing timely legal support. The government’s own data demonstrates that almost all (93%) of those referred into the modern slavery system from immigration detention are given a positive first-stage decision¹. When the government continues pushing the narrative that these individuals are abusing legal processes, it deliberately obscures the facts. These legislative proposals will harm and punish victims who have been enslaved, trafficked and exploited, undermining our obligations and allowing perpetrators to continue evading justice.
The reality is that those of us working on the front line know full well that many migrants experiencing trafficking and exploitation choose not to be referred into the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), often due to fear, mistrust, trauma, insecure immigration status, or a lack of understanding of the system. This strongly suggests that the number of people referred into the NRM is, in fact, an underestimation of the true scale of trafficking and modern slavery in the UK, rather than evidence of widespread misuse.
In this uncertain context of political change, it is urgent for the Government to uphold its commitments towards survivors of violence and abuse. Targeting some of the most vulnerable groups of people through misinformation and scapegoating has only resulted in further harm and divide. The immigration and asylum systems can change for the better. For this to happen, transformations need to be survivor-centred, improving support for specialist service delivery, and ensuring those most affected by violence and abuse can rebuild their lives. We continue to call for the Government to abandon the Earned Settlement proposals, rollback on the provisions set out by the asylum reforms published earlier this year and ensure victims of trafficking and modern slavery are appropriately represented and supported.
References:
- Home Office. (March 2023). Modern slavery referrals for people detained for return after arriving in the UK on small boats. Online: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/modern-slavery-referrals-for-people-detained-for-return-after-arriving-in-the-uk-on-small-boats/, as cited in: International Organization for Migration (December 2025) Modern slavery in the UK: announced policy changes risk leaving victims behind. Online: https://unitedkingdom.iom.int/news/modern-slavery-uk-announced-policy-changes-risk-leaving-victims-behind