On Monday 13th March, MPs came together to debate and cast their votes for the first time - for or against - the Government’s Illegal Migration Bill, better known as the Anti Refugee Bill.
This vote is called Second Reading. This is when the Government Minister responsible for a Bill (in this case the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman), opens the Bill up for debate. The official opposition spokesperson (in this case, Yvette Cooper on behalf of Labour) then responds with their views and a debate takes place. At the end of the debate, MPs vote on whether the Bill should proceed to the next stage in the law-making process.
MPs voted that the Anti-Refugee Bill should proceed to the next stage, with 313 for and 251 against, that’s a majority of 62 (find out who voted here). The next stage of the process is called Committee stage and with this Bill is expected to be fast-tracked, happening over a few days rather than weeks or months. You can find out how laws are made here.
At BIHR, we have huge concerns about the Bill removing vital human rights protections for people. We got in touch with all MPs ahead of the vote asking them to stand firm on human rights law and vote against the Bill. You can read why we asked MPs to vote against the Bill here.
MPs' concerns with the Anti-Refugee Bill
Below is a summary of some of the concerns about the Bill raised by MPs from a range of political on Monday night before the votes were cast.
Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR), Joanna Cherry KC MP shared that the JCHR will be scrutinising the Bill carefully in due course and preparing a report. Cherry’s concerns at the moment are that, “In the Government’s human rights memorandum, the Government accepts that the Bill engages Articles 2,3,4,5,6,8,13 and 14 of the ECHR. And by her (the Home Secretary’s) Section 19 (1) (b) statement she accepts that some or all of these rights might be breached by the Bill.”
- Right to life (Article )
- Right to be free from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (“serious harm”) (3)
- Right to be free from slavery or forced labour (4)
- Right to liberty (5)
- Right to a fair trial in relation to civil right (6)
- Right to family life (8)
- Right to an effective remedy (13)
- Right to be free from discrimination (14)
Sir Robert Buckland, Conservative MP raised that he feels, the Government is seeking to “once again” use law where Buckland believes, “it is operations that matter more than anything”. Buckland’s position is that the UK needs a managed system of return, a quota system. He questioned: “We came together on this on Ukraine”… “why on earth can’t we come together on this?” Buckland believes that we need to extend safe routes of passage in a controlled and measured way and that “it’s no good passing this legislation unless we do those other operational things.”
Yvette Cooper, Labour MP set out that the Bill “not do the things the Prime Minister and Home Secretary have promised”. For example, Cooper believes the Bill won’t clear the asylum backlog and will make it harder to get return agreements. She said the Bill won’t create controlled, managed safe alternatives systems but “it will rip up our long-standing commitment to international law, it will lock up children, remove support and safe refugees for woman who have been trafficked and deny citizenship to people like Mo Farrah.”
Caroline Lucas, Green MP raised that, “this is an immoral, deeply cruel and divisive Bill”. She said it is a Bill that “breaches international law”, “runs rough shod over human rights”, and “shames us all”. Lucas reminded the Government that behind the numbers and the statistics are “real people, with lives and hopes and families and dreams”. Lucas raised that the UN High Commissioner on Refugees has warned that this Bill would amount to an asylum ban. Lucas ended by saying that the Government on the front pages of this Bill are asking Parliament to rip up international law.
- The JCHR is conducting legislative scrutiny of the Anti-Refugee Bill. The Committee’s call for evidence is now open and you can submit your views to it by 6 April 2023 here.
- Get in touch with your MP and tell them your views on the Bill. You can find out who your MP is and their email address here.
- Find out more about the Bill on Amnesty UK and Refugee Action's websites.
BIHR is not responsible for the content of external sites or organisations.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Read about our concerns with the UK Government's "Illegal Migration Bill" and how it impacts people's human rights.
Read about our concerns with the UK Government's "Illegal Migration Bill" and how it impacts people's human rights.
A section-by-section guide to the ECHR.
A section-by-section guide to the ECHR.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Read about our concerns with the UK Government's "Illegal Migration Bill" and how it impacts people's human rights.
Read about our concerns with the UK Government's "Illegal Migration Bill" and how it impacts people's human rights.
A section-by-section guide to the ECHR.
A section-by-section guide to the ECHR.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
Find out which human rights often come up when working with migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees in the UK.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
A section-by-section guide to the Human Rights Act.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Find out about the UK Government's Bill of Rights Bill - better known as the Rights Removal Bill as it puts all our human rights protections at risk.
Head of Policy & Programmes