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Western Telegraph
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Western Telegraph
Cleverly: Starmer more interested in housing asylum seekers than hard workers
Sir James, a former home and foreign secretary, has returned to the Tory front bench after Kemi Badenoch reshuffled her shadow cabinet. He said he was 'furious' when the Prime Minister 'blithely' said there are 'plenty of houses' around the UK for asylum seekers. Sir Keir Starmer insisted there is 'lots of housing available' to accommodate both rising numbers of homeless people and asylum seekers when he was questioned by the Liaison Committee earlier this week. Sir James told Times Radio: 'I was furious, I genuinely couldn't believe he said this, when the prime minister was at the Liaison Committee and blithely said, 'Oh there are plenty of houses around the UK for asylum seekers'. (Starmer) is more interested in finding accommodation for asylum seekers than for hard-working young people here in the UK and that is toxic Sir James Cleverly 'When there are people telling us and telling him that they're struggling to get on the housing ladder and he dismisses their concerns in one line and once again demonstrates he is more interested in finding accommodation for asylum seekers than for hard-working young people here in the UK and that is toxic.' He said he understands the frustrations of local people when asked about demonstrations outside hotels believed to be housing asylum seekers. There has been a series of protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, since an asylum seeker was charged with sexual assault. 'I understand the desire to protest,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. 'There is never any excuse for rioting and we are seeing that agitators, both on the left and the right, are descending upon these communities to try and stir things up and there's never an excuse for that, but I do understand why local people are frustrated.' Former home secretary Sir James Cleverly said he was 'furious' at the Prime Minister's comments (Stefan Rousseau/PA) His new role makes him the opposition counterpart to Angela Rayner in her housing, communities and local government brief, but not in her deputy prime minister post. Ms Rayner said on Tuesday that immigration was among issues having a 'profound impact on society' as she updated Cabinet on her work on social cohesion. Sir James said that she 'makes a very good point' but that it 'rings a bit hollow when she was one of the people that took the knee during the BLM (Black Lives Matter) protest'. She and Labour have 'spent so much time seeming to be on the side of the people who don't play by the rules, who jump the queue, who abuse the system,' he said. 'And now that they're in government, she is saying, 'Oh, well, I think you know, society is fracturing', seemingly blind to the role the Labour Party have played in driving wedges between communities.' He was also asked for his view on leaving the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) after Conservative Party leader Mrs Badenoch launched a review to examine the issue and said she was 'increasingly of the view' that the UK should withdraw. Sir James would not say whether he was also 'increasingly of the view' that the UK should leave the international human rights treaty. It would 'not necessarily be a silver bullet' to leave the ECHR, he told the BBC, but said that if the review leads to it becoming party policy he would abide by that.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Government looking at other countries to process asylum seekers in, home secretary says
The government is looking at other countries it could process asylum seekers in, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has told Sky News. Speaking to Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Ms Cooper said the government has been talking to Italy about its arrangements with Albania and with the EU Commission about other options. said she has been speaking to the Italian interior minister about their deal, which means asylum seekers wanting to settle in Italy will be processed in Albania. Politics latest: Asked if she wants the same deal for the UK, following reports the government is looking at a deal with Albania, Ms Cooper said: "We will always look at what works. "There has to be practical things that will work, not gimmicks." She criticised the Conservative government's , which was meant to see UK asylum seekers processed in Rwanda, for costing £700m but only saw four volunteers sent there. Former Labour home secretary Lord Blunkett has suggested the government should create bespoke agreements with designated "safe" countries to deport foreign criminals and illegal immigrants, as this would override any claims through the Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Asked about that, and whether the UK is talking to Albania or any other countries about an "Italian-style deal", Ms Cooper said: "We've talked to the Italian government about the arrangements that they have, and we've always said we'll look at what works. "We're also talking to the EU Commission who are interested in different approaches around return hubs, that's the kind of thing that you're talking about. "But our central focus is on the borders, the summit, the organised immigration crime summit and on tackling the criminal gangs." Read more: The UK is hosting an "unprecedented" border security summit on Monday with interior ministers and law enforcement from more than 40 countries, Ms Cooper said. She said the summit was necessary because illegal immigration is a "global problem". "The criminal gang networks that end up with people arriving in the UK, stretch back through northern France, through Germany, across Europe, to places like the hills of Kurdistan or the money markets in Kabul," the home secretary said. "So you need to tackle this as a global problem." Ms Cooper added that the government has got new agreements with France and the French government has changed the rules so its police force will now "take action" in the Channel to prevent migrants crossing to the UK in small boats. Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to "smash the gangs", which Ms Cooper said can be seen through the 20% increase in migrant returns since Labour was voted in last summer, a 40% increase in illegal working raids and a 40% increase in arrests for illegal working. The Home Office announced on Sunday that company bosses hiring in the gig economy could face up to five years in prison if they fail to check if their employees can legally work in the UK. Ms Cooper told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: "Frankly, it is too easy at the moment for employers to take people on illegally through those contract mechanisms without those checks in place."
Sky News
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Sky News
Government looking at other countries to process asylum seekers in, home secretary says
The government is looking at other countries they could process asylum seekers in, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has told Sky News. Speaking to Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, Ms Cooper said the government has been talking to Italy about its arrangements with Albania and with the EU Commission about other options. Ms Cooper said she has been speaking to the Italian interior minister about their deal, which means asylum seekers wanting to settle in Italy will be processed in Albania. Asked if she wants the same deal for the UK, following reports the government is looking at a deal with Albania, Ms Cooper said: "We will always look at what works. "There has to be practical things that will work, not gimmicks." She criticised the Conservative government's Rwanda deal, which was meant to see UK asylum seekers processed in Rwanda, for costing £700m but only saw four volunteers sent there. Former Labour home secretary Lord Blunkett has suggested the government should create bespoke agreements with designated "safe" countries to deport foreign criminals and illegal immigrants, as this would override any claims through the Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Asked about that, and whether the UK is talking to Albania or any other countries about an "Italian-style deal", Ms Cooper said: "We've talked to the Italian government about the arrangements that they have, and we've always said we'll look at what works. "We're also talking to the EU Commission who are interested in different approaches around return hubs, that's the kind of thing that you're talking about. "But our central focus is on the borders, the summit, the organised immigration crime summit and on tackling the criminal gangs." 3:00 The UK is hosting an "unprecedented" border security summit on Monday with interior ministers and law enforcement from more than 40 countries, Ms Cooper said. She said the summit was necessary because illegal immigration is a "global problem". "The criminal gang networks that end up with people arriving in the UK, stretch back through northern France, through Germany, across Europe, to places like the hills of Kurdistan or the money markets in Kabul," the home secretary said. "So you need to tackle this as a global problem." Ms Cooper added that the government has got new agreements with France and the French government has changed the rules so its police force will now "take action" in the Channel to prevent migrants crossing to the UK in small boats. Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to "smash the gangs", which Ms Cooper said can be seen through the 20% increase in migrant returns since Labour was voted in last summer, a 40% increase in illegal working raids and a 40% increase in arrests for illegal working. The Home Office announced on Sunday that company bosses hiring in the gig economy could face up to five years in prison if they fail to check if their employees can legally work in the UK. Ms Cooper told Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: "Frankly, it is too easy at the moment for employers to take people on illegally through those contract mechanisms without those checks in place."
