Irregularly arrived migrants should no longer be able to apply for asylum in Britain in future. The opposition doubts the legality of the plans.

With the planned tightening of asylum laws, the British government is treading on thin ice. “We have pushed the limits of international law to resolve this crisis,” British Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who wanted to introduce the law in the London House of Commons on Tuesday, said in an interview with the “Telegraph.”

In concrete terms, almost all migrants who enter Britain irregularly will be detained in accommodation such as military barracks or student dormitories and then deported to Rwanda or other countries. Their right to apply for asylum should be taken away.

“Enough is enough,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wrote in an opinion piece for The Sun tabloid. “This law will send a clear signal that anyone entering this country illegally will be turned away.” In fact, there are hardly any legal routes into the country for people fleeing to the UK. According to The Times newspaper, the government expects to have to answer for its plans in court, the newspaper said, citing government sources.

Britain has already signed a controversial pact with Rwanda to send refugees, paying the country £140 million (currently around €156 million) for it. Immigrants should be able to apply for asylum in Rwanda and, if granted, live there. A return to Britain is not planned. Since the European Court of Human Rights intervened, there has still been no deportation flight from Britain to Rwanda.

There is strong criticism from the opposition and human rights activists: the British Refugee Council criticized Britain for betraying its obligation to give people a fair hearing, regardless of their route of arrival. The government is required to do this by the UN Refugee Convention. Labor leader Keir Starmer questioned whether the plans would be legal.