#home-secretary-confidence

#home-secretary-confidence

In my view, the biggest mistake we've made is abolishing the Rwanda plan. Despite the legal challenges, it represented our best hope for reducing illegal crossings.

"They are still relatively small numbers. But the thing I would say is, this was a pilot. It was designed to try to prove that this new model of working with the French could work. "And there are practical issues around how quickly you can detain people and then get them on a plane and move them out to France."

The Home Office says the changes, due to take effect in June, will restrict accommodation and support payments to "those who genuinely need it". Ministers say the new rules will also remove assistance from asylum seekers who work illegally or break the law.

Under Monday's changes, adults and accompanied children claiming asylum will receive a 30-month period of protection if it is granted. At a 30-month review refugees with a continuing need of sanctuary will have their protection renewed, while those whose countries are now deemed safe will be expected to return home.

Families have told of flights cancelled to funerals, 80th birthday parties and visits to elderly and dying parents. Young parents who were forced to take out citizenship in the EU because of Brexit, but whose children do not yet have British passports, have also been hit. From Wednesday British dual nationals risk not being allowed to board a plane, ferry or train unless they present a current or expired British passport or a certificate of entitlement costing 589, which takes eight weeks to obtain.

Former Home Secretary Suella Braverman has reignited the national debate by calling for a ban on the burka in public spaces - including schools - highlighting concerns about how such measures could influence social cohesion and community relations across Britain. Now a senior figure in Reform UK, Braverman said garments such as the burka and niqab act as a barrier to social cohesion.

The party's newly-appointed Shadow Chancellor, Robert Jenrick, delivered a keynote speech in London outlining policies aimed at tackling what he described as the "ballooning benefits bill" and the "managed decline" under Chancellor Rachel Reeves. Jenrick said Reform UK would reinstate in-person assessments and require clinical diagnoses to prevent misuse of disability benefits.

It was always a matter of when, not if, Suella would defect. The Conservatives did all we could to look after Suella's mental health, but she was clearly very unhappy.

Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary, has released figures which, she says, shows that raids to catch people working in the UK illegally have reached the highest level in British history. The PA Media write-up is a tad less hyperbolic, saying the figures are at their highest level since current records began in 2019. PA reports: Some 12,791 visits took place in 2025, up 57% from 8,122 in the previous year, to businesses such as nail bars, car washes, barbers and takeaway shops.

Nearly 60,000 unauthorised migrants and convicted criminals have been removed or deported from the UK since Labour took office, the Home Office has said. The announcement came amid claims that the government was promoting harmful stereotypes by equating migration with criminality. Officials said the figure was the highest number in a decade. The department said 15,200 people who were in the UK illegally were removed since the 2024 election a 45% increase on the previous 19 months.

"It is staggering Labour has now presided over a fall of 1,313 police officers already,"

The government's review of taxi licensing in England follows Baroness Casey's report on grooming gangs, which identified taxis being used by offenders across the country and recommended tougher rules. At the moment, taxi drivers can buy a private hire vehicle licence from one council but work as far away as they like, taking advantage of lower standards, cheaper licences, and a lack of enforcement. This allows them to get around tough rules aimed at protecting children, such as Rotherham's gold standard licensing scheme, which includes CCTV in cabs.