MP blames Ministers for immigration failures

The Borders Agency is not taking illegal immigration or enforcement policy seriously and deportation rates have dropped as a result, Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary has claimed.

Pontefract and Castleford MP Yvette Cooper said worsening results on foreign criminals were not the fault of the Human Rights Act or the courts, but the Government’s failure to get policy right.

But quizzed on what Labour would do about immigration levels if in office, Ms Cooper did not provide a target figure – claiming it was more important to look at particular groups of migrants.

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Speaking to the BBC, Ms Cooper laid the blame for current problems at the Government’s door.

She said: “We know illegal immigration is getting worse at the moment – for example there has been a nearly 20 per cent reduction in the number of illegal migrants being stopped as a result of the downgrading of security checks last year.

“We know there’s a nearly 20 per cent reduction in the number of foreign criminals being deported.

“The starting point for any system if it’s going to be fair is the rules need to be enforced and that means you need proper enforcement, proper action on illegal immigration.

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“The problem has got worse even in the last 12 months. Since the election there has been a reduction in people being deported, not in fact because of the courts but because the Borders Agency is not taking illegal immigration seriously, is not taking enforcement seriously, and is not getting bureaucracy right.

“I think that does reflect the Home Secretary (Theresa May) took a decision to cut 5,000 staff from the Border Agency. That is putting huge pressure and we are seeing it at the borders and Heathrow at the moment.”

Ms Cooper admitted Labour should have implemented a points-based immigration system earlier to cut the numbers of low-skilled workers coming to the UK.

She said some of the Government proposals, such as minimum salary demands for people looking to immigrate to the UK, were worth backing.

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But Ms Cooper said: “I don’t think, however, it was wrong to have an increase in legitimate foreign graduate students who are coming to Britain, to our universities and bringing billions of pounds into our universities as well.”