Shabana Mahmood will tell Parliament that successful asylum applicants will receive time-limited residence with routine status reviews and return when their home country is judged safe. The proposed policy is modelled on Denmark, using temporary permits (commonly two years) and stricter family reunion rules. Ministers argue the change will deter Channel crossings and reduce support for hard-right parties, while critics warn it echoes far-right talking points and may be politically and morally risky. Mahmood will also highlight perceived judicial barriers under the ECHR as part of her case.
Mahmood to announce Danish-style overhaul — asylum to be temporary only
Shabana Mahmood will tell Parliament that successful asylum applicants will receive time-limited residence with routine status reviews and return when their home country is judged safe. The proposed policy is modelled on Denmark, using temporary permits (commonly two years) and stricter family reunion rules. Ministers argue the change will deter Channel crossings and reduce support for hard-right parties, while critics warn it echoes far-right talking points and may be politically and morally risky. Mahmood will also highlight perceived judicial barriers under the ECHR as part of her case.
01:14 PM, 11/14/2025Politics
Mahmood to tell Parliament successful asylum claims will carry time-limited status
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is expected to tell Parliament on Monday that people granted asylum in the UK will receive time-limited protection rather than permanent settlement, with their status reviewed routinely and a return to their home country when it is judged safe.
The package is presented by ministers as a deterrent to small-boat crossings of the English Channel. Officials say the move marks an end to the era of automatic permanent protection for successful claimants and is part of a broader effort to restore control at the UK border.
Numbers and context
The announcement follows Home Office figures showing that nearly 50,000 illegal migrants have been removed or deported since Labour took office — a 23% increase compared with the previous 16-month period before July 2024 under the Conservatives. Government insiders describe Mahmood's approach as a "significant shift" in policy.
Modelled on Denmark
Many elements mirror changes introduced in Denmark, where a centre-left government has replaced presumptions of long-term protection with temporary residence permits—commonly for two years—followed by reapplication or review. Denmark has also tightened rules on family reunion, making it harder for refugees to bring spouses, partners or children to the country.
Mahmood has sent senior officials to Denmark to study the system and believes its approach helps reduce arrivals while remaining within the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). She and her Danish counterpart, Rasmus Stokland, have both criticised what they call overreach by judges who prioritise ECHR family-life protections in deportation cases; she is expected to address this in her statement.
Political impact and controversy
Supporters argue the Danish-style reforms helped blunt support for the populist right in Denmark, while critics say the model risks echoing far-right rhetoric and could be morally and politically damaging. Within Labour, MPs such as Clive Lewis warned that progressive voters might drift to parties further left, and Nottingham MP Nadia Whittome called following Denmark a "dead end — morally, politically and electorally."
Opposition parties favour different approaches: Reform UK argues temporary permits do not go far enough and favours immediate detention and deportation of cross-Channel arrivals, while the Conservatives say only a return to a Rwanda-style removal scheme will stop the boats — an option Labour previously dismissed as a gimmick.
Mahmood is expected to acknowledge the border situation is, in her words, "out of control," and to warn sceptical colleagues that failing to act could fuel support for harder-right parties. Ministers will argue that demonstrable reductions in arrivals are the only reliable way to regain voter trust on migration and broaden the government's political space on other issues.
Key facts: Nearly 50,000 removals since Labour took office; 23% rise vs the prior 16-month period. Denmark issues temporary permits (commonly two years) and has tightened family reunion rules.