GAPS Network statement in response to the Home Secretary’s recent announcement on migration

The immigration proposals announced by UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood on 5 March mark a significant shift away from the UK’s long-standing commitments to refugee protection. Plans to limit refugee status to 30 months with repeated reassessment, alongside measures to restrict visa routes for certain nationals, will create prolonged insecurity for people already recognised as needing protection and further limit pathways to safety for those fleeing conflict, persecution and gender-based violence. This points to a system shaped more by deterrence than protection. 

At a time when protection needs are rising, the UK should be expanding safe and accessible pathways to protection and education. Policies that restrict visas, narrow asylum routes and create prolonged uncertainty move the UK further away from its international obligations and humanitarian leadership.

The UK cannot claim to champion the WPS Women, Peace and Security agenda and a rules-based international order while advancing policies that undermine refugee protection and deny people fleeing conflict the opportunity to study, rebuild their lives and live in safety.

Read our full statement here.