Immigration must be properly controlled and managed, so the system is fair.
Without proper controls in place, border security is undermined, rules are flouted, the system becomes chaotic and public trust is eroded.
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That is exactly what happened over the past five years when successive Tory prime ministers lost control of border security, and the asylum and immigration system.
The result was that both legal and illegal migration skyrocketed and public confidence fell.
Legal migration rose to record highs as employers were incentivized to hire hundreds thousands of workers from abroadeven when training was cut back here at home.
At the same time, criminal gangs had to take hold of the channelmaking hundreds of millions of pounds of organizing dangerous small boat crossingswhile asylum decisions are made
stopped, and the return of those who have no right to be here rampant.
When Labour came to power in July, every part of the immigration and the asylum system we inherited was in complete disarray.
From day one, we’ve been working to restore control, fix the chaos and get these systems back on track.
This means strengthening border security, going after the criminal gangs, emptying the chaotic asylum backlog and crucially increasing supervision and returns.
To begin with, the rules must be respected and applied. They haven’t been that long.
Right after the choicewe moved 1,000 more staff to immigration enforcement to increase returns for people who have no right to be in the UK.
This has already led to 13,500 returns since the election, with forced returns up by a quarter compared to last year.
Thirty-three round-trip charter flights have been operated over Europe, Asia, Africa and South Americaincluding the four largest return flights in UK history.
We have also increased illegal work raids by almost a third this summer, leading to over 2,000 arrests.
Six business owners have been charged with employing people illegally in the past five months, compared to just four in the previous two-and-a-half years in Tories.
It’s far from enough, but it’s a start in the right direction.
Enforcement teams will be given new technology including body-worn cameras and biometric kits so they can get evidence at the scene.
Employers profiting from illegal labor and shameful exploitation undermine both the immigration system and the economy because companies that follow the rules are undervalued.
Alongside proper respect for the rules here at home, we are pursuing much stronger measures against the criminal smuggling and human gangs that operate across borders.
They have gotten away with undermining our border security and putting lives on the line for far too long.
Then General electionwe have established a new Border Security Command to work with law enforcement agencies across Europe and beyond to carry out joint operations and share intelligence.
We have recruited 100 new specialist investigators and invested £150m in tools and equipment to boost our border security.
Criminal smuggling gangs operate across borders.
First deal of its kind
So law enforcement and governments have to work together across borders to bring them down.
For too long, serious cross-border law enforcement has been far too weak and was badly neglected under the last government which
wasted time on gimmicks instead.
That is why we have drawn up a new action plan against smuggling with G7 partners, to strengthen police cooperation and make it easier to prosecute smugglers.
Last week, The Calais Group – Britain, France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands – agreed a new plan to go further with better information sharing and coordination to stop smugglers advertising online.
Since then, the French interior minister has announced additional police resources to pursue gangs along the French coast.
And I’ve signed a first-of-its-kind deal with Germany to go after gangs who keep small boats and engines in huge warehouses.
German law changes will help stop the boats from reaching
French coast.
Problems will not be fixed overnight, but we are starting to see results
Yvette Cooper
We will work with Europol, and with the Iraqi government and the Kurdish authorities, to continue Iraqi-Kurdish gangs active all over our country according to new agreements I negotiated
earlier this month.
Problems will not be fixed overnight, but we are starting to see results.
Just in the last few weeks we have seen the arrest of a major suspect for supplying boats in the area
The Netherlands and a major operation in Germany and France against a key smuggling ring that seized several boats and engines destined for the French coast – boats that could have led to thousands more people trying to cross the Channel this winter.
The British people want change, and that is what we are delivering. Instead of the failed gimmicks of the past, a Labour The government has a serious and sensible plan to strengthen our border security and
rebuild confidence in a controlled and managed asylum and immigration system.
For generations, the UK has done its part to help those fleeing persecution, seeing people travel here and across the world to start businesses or work in local services.
But for these systems to work, they must be controlled and managed, and the rules must be respected and enforced.
That means no hiding places and no more excuses for those who undermine our border security, hire illegal workers,
and ignore the rules.
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