Shabana Mahmood to ramp up deportations by overriding ECHR in fresh immigration crackdown
Government plots human rights overhaul to speed up deportations
- Labour plans to overhaul human rights laws to facilitate the deportation of foreign criminals and small boat migrants, aiming to strengthen border security.
- The government intends to change how UK judges interpret the European Convention on Human Rights, specifically Article 8 (right to family life) and Article 3 (prohibition of torture), to prevent asylum seekers from using these rights to avoid deportation.
- Proposed measures include tightening family connection rules for Article 8, updating modern slavery laws, restricting illegal migrants to a single appeal route, and potentially making refugee status temporary.
- Visa sanctions will be imposed on Angola, Namibia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo if they do not cooperate with the repatriation of illegal migrants.
- Critics, including human rights charities, warn that these changes will punish vulnerable individuals, drive asylum seekers underground, and undermine fundamental human rights protections.