Keir Starmer is facing a fresh challenge to his authority as Labour MPs vow to force changes to proposed migration measures that would escalate the deportation of families and children. The plans, unveiled by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, have exposed deep divisions within the party, with at least 20 MPs publicly expressing concern.
The proposals include consulting on the enforced removal of families, including children, who have been refused the right to settle in the UK, and have declined payments encouraging them to leave. The government also seeks to alter how the European Convention on Human Rights is interpreted by UK judges to prevent asylum seekers from using family life rights to avoid deportation, and is considering confiscating assets from asylum seekers to contribute to costs.
Defending the plans, Starmer said the government had inherited a broken asylum system. “We need to make sure there’s a consensus on this, that people have confidence in our asylum system, and the truth is that we need to stop people arriving who shouldn’t be here, and we need to return those who are found not to be genuine refugees,” he told the Daily Mirror.
Speaking in the Commons, Mahmood rebuked MPs who accused her of using divisive language, citing the racial slur she said is “regularly” used against her by people telling her to “go back home”. Florence Eshalomi, chair of the housing and communities select committee, pressed the home secretary on whether there would be “unintended consequences” from the policies.
MPs raised particular concerns about the potential detention of children before removal. One Labour MP said: “I didn’t fight an election as a Labour MP to bundle distressed children on to deportation flights.” Another described the measures as “straight out of the far-right playbook”. Simon Opher, a 2024 intake MP, called for an end to “the scapegoating of immigrants”, while Sarah Owen said: “A strong immigration system doesn’t need to be a cruel one.”
A government source insisted there would be no deportations of unaccompanied children and pledged a “huge amount of engagement” with concerned MPs. The source added: “The crisis at our borders is an existential issue for mainstream parties. If we don’t solve the crisis at our border, dark forces will follow.”
