A former advisor to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has called on the UK and French governments to copy measures Joe Biden brought in to tackle dangerous migration
Asylum centres should be set up in France so people can apply to come to the UK without getting in small boats, a former advisor to Yvette Cooper said last night.
A new study calls on the Government to copy the Joe Biden administration’s co-operation with Mexico, which drove down unauthorised crossings by 90% for some nationalities. A report published today by the Future Governance Forum (FGF) calls for Britain and France to set up new centres far away from Calais.
Beth Gardiner-Smith, a former advisor to the now-Home Secretary, said: “Currently, there is no way to apply for asylum if you’re outside the UK, leading thousands to take irregular and dangerous journeys by small boats instead. Asylum Management Centres, working alongside a future readmissions agreement, would provide the realistic deterrent and incentive needed to prevent people getting into boats.”
The report also proposes a cap on numbers, with the UK seeking an agreement with France to return failed asylum seekers on a one-in-one-out basis. It suggests that as relations with Europe are reset, French President Emmanuel Macron might seize the opportunity to stop Calais being a “fortress”.
READ MORE: ‘I survived years of exploitation – sick online supermarkets of the vulnerable must be shut’
Ms Gardiner-Smith continued: “In its final months in office, the Biden administration demonstrated that this approach could reduce irregular border crossings by some nationalities by over 90%…
“The UK-EU reset Summit is an opportunity to seek a similar approach to the Channel.” The FGF argues that processing applications before asylum seekers arrive would give the UK more say in who is allowed in.
Its report states: “Keir Starmer may have been more careful to manage public expectations on the Channel than his immediate predecessor, but ultimately the government’s performance will be judged on delivery not words.
“The question is whether the government is prepared to level with the public on what that means, providing a clear vision for a safer, more controlled system that maintains Britain’s commitment to provide asylum to those in need.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “To stop the criminal smuggling gangs from undermining our border security, the Prime Minister and Home Secretary have said the UK and France must work closely together to prevent dangerous channel crossings, particularly on vital law enforcement cooperation.
“The French have deployed a new elite unit of officers at the coast and a new specialist intelligence unit.
“The Home Secretary has worked with her French counterpart to change their maritime posture allowing them to intervene in shallow waters, and this change should be coming.”
READ MORE: Join our Mirror politics WhatsApp group to get the latest updates from Westminster
