SIR Jacob Rees-Mogg has priased Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood for announcing new measures to curb immigration.
He said on GB News: “The question today is, is Shabana Mahmood the only sensible person in the Labour cabinet?
“Well, it’s really interesting, because Shabbat Mahmoud has succeeded in expressing the nation’s anger, frustration, concern about mass, uncontrolled illegal migration. But she’s done better than that, because not just today, but after the last few months, she’s taken steps that may actually reduce it.
“She’s using powers under secondary legislation and indeed ministerial direction that will allow her to limit the ability of people to stay in this country.
“So we’ve already discussed earlier in the week that students from certain countries will not be able to get visas to come here because of their propensity to claim asylum and cleverly, intelligently, with political sophistication, she’s not facing a full on charge in the House of Commons, where a lot of labor MPs don’t agree with her.
“One hundred have signed the letter criticising her proposals, and some Labour sources immediately blamed the loss in Gorton and Denton on Shabana Mahmood.
“She’s doing it in a way that doesn’t require the risk of a defeat in the House of Commons. She’s taking people’s concerns seriously, and she’s taking steps that at least in theory, would help reduce the problem.
“Now this isn’t as easy as it sounds, for a number of reasons, partly that to control illegal migration, to get to grips with asylum, what you need to do is change the Human Rights Act, leave the European Convention on Human Rights. It’s not an answer in itself, but it is what is necessary to get through the morass.
“And you also need to remember that while Denmark has managed to remove 95% of people who have claimed asylum and been turned down. The problem here is people coming here illegally who then succeed in their applications, far too many of whom have been getting here and then have been able to stay, who have come here using methods that are improper, coming in boats or over staying on their visas and then claiming asylum.
“So without withdrawing from the Human Rights Convention, she won’t be able to stop the thousands, the tens of thousands, indeed, ultimately, the hundreds of 1000s have been claiming asylum successfully, but she may be able to do a bit better in removing those who have failed in their applications. Though, not all of this is perfect.
“I mean, I happen to think the scheme to give people £10,000 a pop to leave the country will encourage opportunists to come. If your trip on a boat costs £4,000 and you get £10,000 to leave, you’re in credit to £6,000 pounds, or you come on a holiday with your family, get a visa, claim asylum at the end of it and get £40,000 pounds to go home, making a very nice profit on your holiday to the United Kingdom.
“So I don’t think that’s actually a very sensible solution, but at least she’s trying. But Labour doesn’t like it. She doesn’t have the support of her party. A lot of Labour MPs, particularly ones in London. Ones in London are pro mass migration. They’re as bad as the greens. They don’t really believe in controlling borders, and that’s why you will not with a Labour government, get that key step, that key that unlocks the door of removing the European Convention on Human Rights.
“Labour is terribly committed to that…”
