Overview

• The Labour government will abolish automatic family reunion for people granted refugee status, following last month’s suspension, with details to be set out at today’s EU leaders’ summit in Copenhagen.
• Ministers say they will revise how human‑rights protections are interpreted to ease deportations.
• Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has proposed stricter routes to permanent residence, including higher English proficiency, sustained employment and volunteer work, with the qualifying period planned to rise from five to ten years.
• The package includes a planned digital identity credential to prove the right to work by 2029 in a country that does not issue national ID cards.
• Officials cite more than 111,000 asylum applications between June 2024 and June 2025 and over 33,000 Channel crossings this year, while the Refugee Council warns the shift could push more people toward smugglers.