The Refugee Council says home secretary Shabana Mahmood has caused distress by hardening settlement rules so some refugees may wait up to 30 years before gaining the right to settle, The Guardian reports. Campaigners argue that conflicts with her earlier assurance that only non-refugee illegal entrants would face that wait.
About 200,000 successful asylum applicants who expected to seek indefinite leave after five years will instead face status reviews every 30 months, critics say. Monday’s plan also puts irregular arrivals, including small-boat crossings, on a 30-year track. Footnotes in the Home Office paper indicate refugees not on safe routes who claimed before 2 March 2026 move onto “core protection”, dropping a March pledge that earlier claimants could settle after five years.
Source: The Guardian