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The UK is considering a 'transactional' approach to return agreements and how countries that do not sign one will be treated...
Countries that refuse to take back migrants who arrive illegally in the UK could face visa bans for their citizens, a plan being considered by British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
He said he was considering the possibility of a more “transactional” approach to return agreements and how to deal with countries that refuse to sign one with the UK.
Sir Keir raised the idea with other world leaders at the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, as he called on European counterparts to do more to tackle the small vessel crisis.
The number of people arriving in the UK by small boats across the Channel so far this year is around 40 per cent higher than last year.
The continued passage of migrant boats through the canal has increased pressure on the Government to go further in addressing the problem.
The United Kingdom has return agreements with countries such as Albania, India, Pakistan, Vietnam, Iraq, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Georgia, Somalia, Serbia and Algeria.
Each is different, but generally they include a commitment to take back citizens who do not have the right to remain in the UK, such as rejected asylum seekers and foreign criminals.
Sir Keir said he had floated the idea of linking return agreements to visas at a roundtable discussion on Monday, The Telegraph reports.
He said he had “made it clear that we are looking at issues like smarter use of our visas”, noting that this included “looking at whether we should link our visas to the work that the countries we deal with are doing on preventive measures and return agreements”.
"We are looking at what we can do about return agreements. We have reached a number of bilateral agreements on return.
"So the question is, is it possible to go a little further, including looking at visa issues now, and whether we can't be a little smarter with the use of our visas in relation to countries that don't have a readmission agreement with us," he said.
Asked if this would mean that countries that refused to sign readmission agreements would have their visas lifted, he said: “Yes, it would be much more transactional, if you will.”
"We're looking into it now, but I certainly think there are areas like that that we need to look at more closely," he said.
Sir Keir also held discussions with the leaders of France, Italy and Germany about where they could collaborate more deeply to tackle the small vessel crisis.
His talks with Emmanuel Macron, the French president, included discussing "innovative ways" to deal with the influx of ships, according to a Downing Street spokesman.
There will be a British-French summit next month, at which it seems likely that a new package of measures to combat the crisis will be announced.
Sir Keir Starmer held discussions with the leaders of France, Italy and Germany about where they could collaborate more deeply to tackle the small ship crisis.
The Downing Street announcement of the Starmer-Macron bilateral meeting mentioned the “deteriorating situation in the Channel”, an apparent reference to the high number of crossings this year.
Asked if this was an admission of failure over the ban on small vessels in his first months in office, Sir Keir said: "There is a serious situation regarding the Channel crossings and, as I have said on several occasions, no one should be making that crossing. It is a serious challenge that requires a serious response."
Sir Keir said his talks with Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister, focused on what could be done "upstream", an area in which Meloni has had "some success in reducing the numbers", the Prime Minister added.
He also spoke with Friedrich Merz, the German chancellor, who was attending his first G7 summit, about the problem of how some of the ships used for the crossings often move through Germany. / Adapt Pamphlet/
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