Tory rebels defiant over immigration

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 30 Januari 2014 | 19.21

30 January 2014 Last updated at 07:15 ET
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David Cameron faces a rebellion in the Commons as Tory MPs push for a ban on foreign criminals using European human rights law to avoid deportation.

It comes despite ministers unveiling their own last minute amendment to the Immigration Bill to strip terror suspects of UK citizenship.

About 100 Tory MPs want to go further and curb the power of judges to block deportation of foreign criminals who have family links to Britain.

MPs are debating the measures now.

Downing Street said the prime minister had a "great deal of sympathy" with the aim of making it easier to deport foreign criminals but had "significant concerns about the workability" of the rebel amendment.

The prime minister's spokesman declined to say whether the government would support it or not.

Some Conservative backbenchers could also vote against the government by backing a demand to reintroduce the working restrictions on Romanians and Bulgarians that were scrapped on 1 January. A vote on this was originally due before Christmas, with some critics claiming it had been delayed to avoid a rebellion.

Last-minute proposal

But support for this amendment to the bill is thought to be waning, with the focus shifting instead to the foreign criminal and human rights issue.

Some Conservative MPs fear the government amendments to the Immigration Bill could deprive them of the chance to debate proposals that could bring Britain into conflict with the European Court of Human Rights.

Home Secretary Theresa May has come up with a last-minute proposal that would see terror suspects stripped of their citizenship even if it left them stateless.

It would not apply to British citizens but could see foreigners who have become naturalised citizens whose conduct is deemed "seriously prejudicial" lose their nationality.

People with dual nationality can already lose their British passports.

The Home Office insists the powers would be used sparingly and in strict accordance with the UK's international obligations. It also has the support of the Lib Dem leadership, who accept it would only apply in a tiny number of cases.

'Government trick'

Immigration Minister Mark Harper said: "Citizenship is a privilege, not a right. These proposals will strengthen the home secretary's powers to ensure that very dangerous individuals can be excluded if it is in the public interest to do so."

But the legal charity Reprieve has described the plan as an "alarming development" saying it would give the home secretary power to "tear up people's passports without any need for the kind of due process".

The main thrust of the Immigration Bill is being supported across the Commons.

The new legislation would:

  • Allow foreign criminals to be deported before the outcome of their appeal is known, as long as they do not face "serious irreversible harm" at home
  • Cut the number of grounds for appeal against deportation from 17 to four
  • Compel landlords to check whether tenants are in the UK illegally, with those failing to do so facing large fines
  • Force banks to check immigrants' legal status before offering accounts
  • Make some temporary migrants - such as students - pay a £200-a-year levy towards the cost of NHS services

Mrs May's proposal to strip terror suspects of citizenship has been added to a list of about 50 government amendments to the Immigration Bill - potentially making it less likely that rebel amendments will be debated.

The home secretary told MPs at the start of the Commons debate that it would have been better to introduce the amendments at an earlier stage in the bill's passage, allowing time for greater debate,

But she said they were mainly "technical" amendments, relating to visas, fees, "sham" marriages and civil partnerships, which had to be introduced before it became law.

Tory rebel Dominic Raab told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "It's a classic government trick. They try and concertina the agenda so that they have got the power to talk out amendments that they find inconvenient. Then they blame the Speaker for it. The Speaker actually has very limited powers."

Mr Raab's proposal - calling for foreign criminals to be deported more easily - is likely to be debated, however, as it is on the Speaker's provisional list of amendments to be called.

The MP said his proposed law was "vital" to make Theresa May's proposal work, as there was no point in stripping someone of their citizenship if they could not then be deported.

He said: "The point is we need to be much more robust about this. It's not illegal. It's totally enforceable. The government legal advice is that the courts would enforce it and, actually, it's what the public want to see."


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