Downing Street has told Labour MPs it expects their full support for sweeping new asylum and migration reforms, even as some backbenchers warn the policies are economically and culturally illiterate and likely to face strong opposition within the party.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood is due to unveil the proposals on Monday. Officials say the plans will draw heavily on Denmark’s strict migration model, which includes tight limits on family reunions and the return of some refugees if conditions improve in their home countries.
The package will also revive earlier suggestions to reinterpret the European convention on human rights (ECHR) in UK courts, making it easier to remove people without lengthy legal battles.
Government officials are framing the reforms as essential to restoring public trust in the asylum system and countering the rise of Reform UK, which advocates dismantling asylum protections altogether.
Also, a Downing Street spokesperson insisted that dissent would not be tolerated. “The government was elected on a mandate to secure our borders,” he said. “We’re focused on fixing the mess we inherited and restoring order and control to our asylum system.”
But details of the plan briefed to right-leaning newspapers particularly comparisons to Denmark’s policies, including strict family rules and the controversial seizure of valuables from asylum seekers triggered immediate anger among some Labour MPs.
“It’s economically and culturally illiterate,” one MP said. “Are we really going to take wedding rings from trafficking victims, or tell Ukrainians they can never settle here?”
Another warned that chasing Reform would undermine public confidence rather than rebuild it. A third MP questioned whether the government had the strength to force such legislation through parliament, noting that colleagues in seats threatened by the Liberal Democrats or Greens would be unlikely to back it: “Weak governments don’t get to push through controversial policy.”
Expected changes to ECHR interpretation would require judges to place greater weight on public safety than on rights to family life or risks of inhuman treatment upon return.
The Home Office has described the package as “the most sweeping reforms to tackle illegal migration in modern times.”
Ahead of the announcement, it revealed that 48,560 people have been removed or deported since Labour took office a 23% increase compared with the 16 months before last year’s election. Yet small boat crossings remain high, with 39,075 arrivals so far this year, up 19% on the same period in 2024.
A government official said MPs needed to acknowledge public concern about an asylum system “being gamed,” adding: “If we don’t do this, there risks being no asylum system at all, particularly if Reform win the election.”
While some Labour MPs in Reform-threatened constituencies endorse the argument, others fear the government risks alienating progressive voters and accelerating defections to the Greens under Zack Polanski.
