​By Kath Grant
​
Nearly 20 years after Labour Home Secretary John Reid declared the UK asylum system “not fit for purpose”, Shabana Mahmood insists nothing has changed and that a wide-ranging transformation is needed.
This summer, far right groups created anger, fear and confusion in their attempts to pit local residents against refugees who live in asylum accommodation hotels. Deliberate targeting of refugees became increasingly febrile as they were scapegoated for shortages of social housing, pressure on school places, and the near collapse of the health service.



​The government's remedy led to the publication this week of Mahmood's new asylum and returns policy, Restoring Order and Control - which proposes the most radical changes to the asylum system in 40 years and removes the right to permanent status for refugees.
Greeted with enthusiasm by the Tories and Reform, with the predictable caveat that it “doesn't go far enough”, it has also impressed far right leaders like Tommy Robinson. He told his followers on X that the Overton window had been obliterated thanks to the work of the “patriots” who spent the summer demonstrating outside hotels and sharing alarmist propaganda and false stories on social media.
Many MPs are dismayed that Mahmood and her ministers have chosen to use language like “a golden ticket” to describe the asylum system and have seemingly suggested that refugees might have jewellery taken from them to pay for asylum accommodation. 
In parliament, the Home Secretary talked vaguely about confiscating assets - but it is questionable how much of this headline grabbing idea is grounded in reality as most refugees spend all their money travelling to the UK in the first place.
Mahmood is dismissive of MPs who have pointed out the cruelty and crudity of her policy. She said illegal migration is dividing communities and claims that people are flouting the rules and abusing the system. 

The far right have fed on concerns in communities, particularly with regard to housing and education, but the Home Secretary's plans will not allay these fears. Alf Dubs, the long-time campaigner for refugee children's rights, argues that they are more likely to exacerbate them as temporary asylum status will not lead to better understanding and integration. 
Mahmood is adamant that removing children is essential if their families’ asylum claims have been refused. When asked by John McDonnell MP for an assurance that no child would be placed in detention, Mahmood did not respond.
The Home Secretary says: “We have a genuine problem to fix. People are angry about something that is real.” And,in a clear reference to the policies of the Conservative Party, Reform and the far right, she adds: "If these moderate forces fail, something darker will follow.” 
She talks about “perverse incentives” in the current system which, she claims, are encouraging families with children to cross the Channel in small boats. Refugees have been living on benefits, she says, but she doesn't mention that most people seeking asylum in the UK are not allowed to work, and the processing of asylum claims is notoriously slow and inaccurate so it can take many years.
Mahmood adds: “In 2024, asylum claims in the UK rose by 18 per cent, a record high. Across Europe, claims fell by 13 per cent.” 
As asylum and immigration lawyer Sonia Lenegan points out, the Home Secretary fails to mention that Germany (218,550) receives twice as many asylum applications as the UK (109,343). The UK is actually in fifth place in Europe, behind Germany, Spain (164,830), France (159,260) and Italy (151,525).
The new policy outlines various “pull factors” for people coming to the UK. No evidence is cited to support these “pull factors” but Mahmood's solution is to quadruple the period of settlement before refugees can apply for citizenship. It will increase from five to 20 years, whereas settlement in Denmark - which Mahmood cites as the model for her policy - can be achieved after eight years.
Refugees’ asylum status is to be reviewed every two and a half years. If their home country is deemed safe, they will be returned.
The two and a half year review as described by the Home Secretary effectively means refugees will have to keep applying for status and the Home Office will only grant the extension if they accept there is still a need for protection. If it is decided there is no longer a need, the person will be removed.  
Sonia Lenegan says: “People will spend 20 years of their lives living in terror of being sent back to a country where the UK has accepted they have previously been at risk of persecution.”
There will be “no automatic right to family reunion”. It will still exist but there will be stricter requirements. Benefits for migrants will also be tightened up with a consultation on the details coming up next year.
The refugees arriving through new “safe and legal” routes may also need to renew their leave to remain applications every two and a half years and live under the threat of removal during a 10 year period.
Lenegan adds: “These proposals are cruel, unnecessary and will have no impact on the desperate people who continue to make the dangerous journey across the Channel.”
The migrant-led national organisation Migrant Voice says genuine safe asylum routes must be provided and adds:
“For those who have fallen out of status we need more effective routes to regularisation, not adding to the number of people waiting 20 years before they get a chance of having some stability in their lives.
“For migrants in general, we need policies which treat us with respect and dignity, not ones which treat us as free labour, such as the ‘mandatory volunteering’, to prove our worth.
“This government had the opportunity to implement policies which actually help people and the communities we live in. Instead, it has decided to push ever downwards in making our lives harder, ripping our families apart, and leaving us scared for our very futures.”


To read more detail on the changes please visit Freemovement and migrantvoice
For existing and government proposed legislation see here


Kath Grant is an NUJ activist and a journalist of over 40 years' experience who contributes to the regional and national media.

Alimamy, Chair of RAPAR, addressing the Sudan solidarity gathering at St Peter's Square 01 Nov 2025

We are devastated by the terrorist attack that took place on Thursday 2 October 2025, outside Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester, on the morning of Yom Kippur. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and the wider Jewish community, targeted in a moment of sacred reflection.
RAPAR unequivocally condemns all acts of violence—whether committed in the name of faith, ideology, or vengeance. We stand against antisemitism, anti-Islam, and all forms of faith hatred that seek to divide us. We also affirm the dignity of those who hold no faith, and the right of every person to live free from fear.
Manchester is more than a city—it is a mosaic of the world. From Cheetham Hill to Rusholme, Salford to Longsight, people from every continent have made homes here. Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, secular, and spiritual communities’ live side by side, not in perfect harmony, but in a shared rhythm of everyday coexistence. This pluralism is not a slogan—it is a lived reality, forged through struggle, solidarity, and mutual respect.
But today, that reality is under threat. The UK is in a volatile state—economically strained, politically fragmented, and morally adrift. The erosion of public trust, the scapegoating of migrants, and the normalisation of state violence have created fertile ground for extremism. In this climate, tragedies like Crumpsall are not isolated—they are symptomatic.
We must also speak plainly: the genocide against Palestinians by the Israeli state, backed by Western governments including our own, has deepened global divisions. The refusal to hold power to account, the silencing of dissent, and the dehumanisation of entire peoples has created a climate where rage festers and violence erupt.
We reject the false binary that pits communities against each other. We reject the instrumentalisation of grief to justify surveillance, repression, or war. And we call on all people—especially those in Manchester—to recommit to the principles of justice, solidarity, and truth.
Let this tragedy not be a wedge, but a wake-up call. Let us mourn together, organise together, and build a future where no one is expendable.
to edit.

On 31st August 2025, RAPAR members Ibrahim and Alimamy joined the call from Stand Up To Racism outside Manchester’s South Hotel to counter a demonstration by far-right activists targeting people seeking asylum.
The hotel, currently housing asylum seekers under Home Office arrangements, became the site of a protest rooted in racism, fascism, and hostility. In response, RAPAR members — including our Chair — stood in solidarity with those inside, affirming the dignity and rights of all who seek safety.
RAPAR opposes the politics of division. We stand with people seeking asylum, and we will continue to challenge the systems and narratives that dehumanise us.

Click here to read the ITV Article featuring our Rhetta Moran regarding the raid on hotels housing people seeking asylum

​"Netanyahu’s Push to Reoccupy Gaza Is a Dangerous Gamble That Threatens to Ignite the Entire Region"

Tuesday, August 5, 2025 – London

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signaled a major and reckless escalation: his government is now moving toward the full reoccupation of the Gaza Strip—a move that would not only destroy any remaining prospects for a ceasefire but plunge the entire region into chaos.

According to today’s report in The Australian, Netanyahu has openly declared that the Israeli military must prepare to seize Gaza completely. A quote from the article states: “The decision has been made. We are going to fully occupy the Strip. If the army chief won’t do it, he must resign.”

This is no longer a war for “security.” It is a blueprint for endless bloodshed.

What this decision means:

A return to direct military occupation of 2.3 million Palestinians, many of them displaced children, under siege since 2007.

The collapse of ongoing negotiations to free Israeli hostages and reach a humanitarian truce.

A likely resurgence of resistance across Palestine, from the West Bank to refugee camps in Lebanon and beyond.

The total breakdown of international humanitarian access into Gaza, where starvation and disease are already rampant.

The possibility of multi-front war, dragging the entire region into a wider conflict—with massive implications for Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Iran.

This is not a strategic move. It is a desperate act of political survival by a man facing corruption charges and mass protests at home. Netanyahu is gambling with the lives of millions, Palestinian and Israeli alike, to stay in power.

This moment demands clarity: There is no military solution to this conflict. There is no “victory” in occupying a broken and starving people. And there is no future for Israel in the total destruction of Gaza.

The international community must act immediately. Silence is complicity.

Palestinian refugee Ibrahim addresses the beginning of the Antifascist demo in Manchester Piccadilly Gardens on 2nd of August 2025
Youtube Link:
https://youtu.be/qvnd59ypCp4

RAPAR is proud to spotlight the voices that challenge harmful systems and illuminate lived realities. In this powerful piece for openDemocracy, our volunteer explores how the UK’s modern slavery identification system—intended to protect—can instead obstruct asylum claims and deepen mistrust. Their analysis offers a vital lens on the intersection of policy, perception, and survival. Read the full article on openDemocracy.

​Alimami, Chair of RAPAR talks in solidarity at Cresta Court hotel in Altrincham on Saturday May 10th 2025.

To endorse this statement from your group/ organisation/ trade union, PLEASE EMAIL [email protected]
 
June 2024
​
We at RAPAR are primarily a collection of people with living experience of displacement who have been forced to flee our homes for our safety.  Our own first-hand knowledge of the effects of political violence makes us experts in the impact and experience of forced migration (both within and across international borders).  We share this statement under the umbrella of RAPAR, because, as one member said of their homeland: “If you speak out nowadays, you will be killed”.
 
We have witnessed how power, wealth and resources have been accumulated by Western leaders and the super-rich through the destruction of our homes - ‘Udzvanyiriri’ (Shona) - and we ourselves have been exposed to political violence and religious persecution. We draw on our own experiences as activists who have fled our home countries and been subject to violent conflicts and war in different international contexts. Combined with our own expertise, we also draw on the knowledges of indigenous RAPAR members, who have decades of experience in analysing the consequences of forced displacement in the UK.
 
We are here to speak on the ‘Ganahatta’ (Bengali), the ‘Ghatleaam’ (Persian), or Cinedhíothú (Irish). These words describe in a few of our own languages the genocide that has happened historically in some of the countries that we once called home and that is being wreaked upon Palestine now. Whilst these words are from different languages spoken by RAPAR members, we recognise how histories of colonialism – ‘Estemaar’ (Persian) – and colonial exploitation – ‘Vapambi’ (Shona) – have brought fear and brutality and continue to do so. We need to talk about these brutalities and the violences that are being inflicted both in Palestine and elsewhere.
 
Just as we have watched in fear and sadness at the obliteration of Palestine, we have watched the small boat deaths in the English Channel and from our perspective, in both cases, the UK Government is paying for these people to die. The UK Government talks about human rights but it is not upholding human rights. Through its arming of Israel, it is directly implicated in the genocide of Palestinian people, and through its treatment of people in the Channel and in its ‘hostile environment’ here, it is also directly implicated in the drownings, suicides and desolation of people seeking asylum in the UK.
 
As people who have living experience of persecution who have been involved in political activism prior to becoming displaced, and involvement in political activism in the UK, we say to you that we refugee people continue to fight for the people who we were forced to leave behind, and we continue to fight for refugee rights in the UK.
 
Being frequently unable to speak out for fear of reprisal, we release this statement as a Collective standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people, and with the survivors of Imperialism’s colonial violence worldwide.  #FreePalestine #StopArmingIsrael #REFUGEES4PALESTINE @raparuk