Channel Crossings in Small Boats Debate

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Department: Home Office

Channel Crossings in Small Boats

Scott Benton Excerpts
Monday 22nd November 2021

(2 years, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Priti Patel Portrait Priti Patel
- Parliament Live - Hansard - - - Excerpts

I refer the hon. Gentleman to my earlier comments. Safe and legal routes cannot be delivered on their own. We will be working with international partners such as the UNHCR and the IOM, in the same way that we have done with the Syrian resettlement scheme, to ensure that we support those who are fleeing persecution. I hope that is a policy that he will support.

Scott Benton Portrait Scott Benton (Blackpool South) (Con)
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The Human Rights Act 1998 has handed power to unelected judges and it is clear that the creeping power of the courts is directly interfering in our ability to get a grip of our asylum and immigration policies. Does my right hon. Friend agree that, if we are finally going to stop bogus asylum seekers routinely coming to the UK, it is time to scrap the Human Rights Act altogether?

Priti Patel Portrait Priti Patel
- Parliament Live - Hansard - - - Excerpts

My hon. Friend makes an important point about asylum claims, courts and tribunals, the prevarication, the delays and the frustration. That is why we have the Nationality and Borders Bill. That is why we will introduce, as part of one of the measures, a one-stop appeals process because, as we know, claimants go back again and again, care of UK taxpayers. We want to break that cycle; we want to stop that. We will, through that Bill, reform immigration courts and tribunals to deal with cases in a much more effective way.