Tory MPs call for ‘league’ of immigration crimes based on nationality

Immigration nationalities with the highest crime rates may be included in government plans to tighten visa and deportation policies.

Former immigration secretary Robert Jenrick has proposed amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill that would require the nationality, visa and status of every criminal convicted in the courts of England and Wales to be published annually in a crime “league”. Asylum status.

A small group of around 12 Conservative MPs backed the amendment, details of which have been released first reported exist Daily Telegraph.

It comes days after figures showed that the number of migrants crossing the Channel to the UK so far in 2024 has hit a record high in the first three months of the year.

A government source said ministers would “certainly consider the amendment seriously and engage with colleagues in the usual way”, although the newspaper reported concerns were raised about the practicality of implementing the proposal.

Mr Jenrick told BBC Radio 4’s Today program there was “substantial and growing” evidence that crime was being imported into the UK and that migrants’ nationality was already taken into account in visa applications.

He added: “My suggestion is that crime data plays a role in this. We want there to be greater scrutiny of higher risk nationalities.”

The latest Home Office figures show that there are 10,300 foreigners in prisons in England and Wales, accounting for about 12% of the total prison population.

The Refugee Council said asylum rules in the UK were already “very strict”. Serious criminals are not allowed to remain in the country, the group told the BBC in an interview.

But when it comes to british news, Mr Jenrick said: “I think the public wants to know who is coming into our country and what the economic, financial and social impact of immigration is.

“There are people who come to this country to harm us. There are people who come from countries that don’t share our Western liberal values ​​and attitudes towards women and minorities, and we need to be open and honest about that.”

He also claimed he “didn’t want to talk” about restrictions on legal immigration when Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and former Home Secretary Zuela Braverman repeatedly tried to raise the issue – a claim that Downing was met with. Street sources questioned.

Mr Sunak has been under pressure from MPs on the party’s right since revised official estimates were released in November showing net migration – the difference between people arriving and leaving the UK – would hit a record 745,000 in 2022 , requiring it to take action.

The UK government has introduced a series of restrictions to reduce the number of people arriving legally in the UK, including banning overseas carers from bringing dependents to the UK and raising the salary threshold for skilled workers to £38,700.

Home Secretary James Cleverly has asked the Immigration Advisory Committee to review graduation pathways for international students, while the minimum income requirement for family visas will rise to £29,000 from 11 April and to £38,700 in early 2025 GBP.

Sunak has previously vowed to “take the necessary steps” to reduce net migration.